Falconers and the Tomb of Aminus
by MadDounut
Summary: When I became a Falconer I didn't know what to expect. Living a life of adventure while I slayed monsters on the side did seem kinda badass. But no, Instead of monsters were now hunting for some stolen Light Magic that belonged to some black dragon. Now I havent stayed in this world too long but from what I heard he distroyed most of Carridian aparantly. So much for monsters.
1. Act 1 Chapters 1-5

Falconers and Hexers

 **Chapter 1**

Joel woke up with a stiff neck and body. His head hurt and his head felt like it had a hangover. He opened his eyes and saw that he wasn't in the city but in the middle of a path on a mountain. "Where am I?" he said to himself as he tried to stand up. But he quickly realized he couldn't. He saw that his hands and feet where hoofs.

Startled he jumped back and pinned himself against a rock. "What the hell!" he said to himself. "what is this?" He did a body check looking at everything he could. Quickly he realized he was a horse. The tail helped as not animals had a tail like a horse.

He looked around trying to understand where he was, but it appeared he was a lying in the middle of the path in some rocky mountains. There were trees that poked out of the mountain in certain spots but there wasn't much. Joel didn't know where to go because even though he was in the middle of a path it most likely branched off further down the line eventually leading to him getting lost and dying of cold or whatever.

Just when he was starting to really worry, he started to hear sounds of a cart approaching as its wooden wheels rolled over rock after rock. Joel, wanting to get rescued from this place, kept a cool head and stood up best he could and toward where he was hearing the sounds. He could see that the mountain he was on was one of many. If he traveled alone he would have definitely gotten lost.

As Joel came around a corner, he could saw that the cart was being pulled by a dark green and a blue horse, and a few others were beside it spread out on either side. They all stopped once they saw Joel standing in the middle. Their was a tarp over the top of the cart covering whatever they may be hauling.

As Joel observed them he could see that some did indeed have armor although it wasn't a substantial amount. Not wanting the awkward silence to get weird he spoke up first saying, "hey, do you guys know this place?"

"Know this place?" asked one, "of course we do. The real question here is what are you doing here? You're trespassing."

"Trespassing? I just got lost and…" Joel was trying to figure out a believable lie so they didn't think he was crazy or anything but they cut him off.

"Lost? No pony just gets lost. You made the mistake of coming here." Joel could hear the hostility in his voice and didn't like where this was going.

"It was by accident."

Then the same horse spoke up and by now Joel could guess he was the leader, "No one makes this mistake. It's all too known to travel alone in the radecks pass." He stared at Joel for a second. There were about fifteen of them. Joel didn't know if he could outrun these guys. HHe did just get this new body, and although it was like bear crawling he was still getting used to it. "whoever catches him first get a bonus," said the 'leader,' "take him alive if you can."

They must have liked the sound of bonuses because about eight of them took off in a dead run at Joel. So Joel did the only sensible thing anyone would do. He ran in the opposite direction as fast as he could. Even if he did get lost at least he wouldn't be potentially killed by these bandits or sold as a slave. However this world worked it must have had some sort of cheap labor system, and who wouldn't want a strong able bodied worker who you don't have to even pay?

As delighted as the sound of a job with no benefits sounded Joel thought there was better employment options, so he kept running as fast as he could. Where ever else was fine as long as he lost them.

He came around a corner and wouldn't you know it, there was a dead end. He turned around and already they had blocked the path that lead into it. He had no escape. On his right there was the steep cliff going up and on the left there was a steep cliff going down. Not sure if taking the fall would leave enough bones unbroken and blood in his bodie to crawl off the mountain, so it probably wasn't the best idea. "Hey guys i don't want any trouble."

"You already found it."

At this point Joel didn't know if these guys were supposed to be Futile Age hustlers or something. He counted ten of them. Some had chest plates of armor and others had almost nothing to protect them, but all of them had a rode that was attached to the side of the front shoulder. with a wire running up to their ear that was attached by a leather peace.

Joel slowly backed up, "I don't know about you but um," I thought of a good comeback, "I know krav maga, and like I killed people with it." He used intimidation but it was ineffective against the bandit group.

"Shut up and come quietly," and after he flicked his ear down and back and the tubes that were fixed to their shoulders protruded a spear like blade that stuck out at about there whole body length.

"I don't like this," he was at the very edge of the cliff with one more step and he would have fallen.

He started to walk towards him and each step his fixed sword thing would wave left and right. Quick enuf so that it would make a deep cut into his body and that didn't sound too nice. "Tie him up."

Joel didn't wanna get sliced and since had no other option so he let himself get captured without a struggle. They tied his front hoofs to the back of the cart they were pulling despite the fact he was cooperating. As they started walking the horse that tied his front hoofs up said, "Let's see how long you can last dragging behind this." He pulled roughly on the rope tightening it even more making it bite into Joel's skin.

He let out a silent grunt as the ropes tightened around his hoofs, "Won't it make it harder for you to do your job dragging me around?" Trying to sound like a smart ass didn't pay off and he got hit over the head with something hard and made metal. The hit almost knocked him out and he collapsed slightly which caused the ropes to tighten down even harder.

"I said silence." He flashed the broadside of his sword in his face showing that that is what hit him in the head. He flicked his ear again and the sword flattened back out on the X axis. The cart started with a jolt and Joel quickly picked himself up so that his hoofs didn't get destroyed by simply pulling him.

Joel took this time to think about what had happened just before he fell into this world. He remembered every thing that had happened up to the point where he woke up. Last thing he remembered back on earth was meeting some stranger who really liked the sight of common change for some reason. Apparently giving him some got Joel here so that guy wasn't just some homeless person or a wizard or something. Probably was since he was now here as a horse.

He had been walking with his front hoofs elevated just in front of him making it really uncomfortable and hard walking on his hind legs. If Joel didn't know it, now he did. This was how they would torture others. The lower back in four legged animals did not have as strong muscles compared to a human's. So having to walk on your hind legs for a long period of time was painful if not unbearable.

Joel knew he had to get out some how, and with every rock they rolled over and every dip they took, it sent searing pain through his front hoofs. "Gotta get out of this," he said quietly to himself. He was getting tired real quick and if he collapsed from exhaustion they may just be nice enough to drag him along as he get cut up and bloodied by rocks, and his wrist might break too from being tied so tight.

Since most of the bandits were in the front of the line making sure it's secure/safe/nobody-would-fuck-with-them that no one was worried about Joel all alone in the back. Thinking this was the best idea he started to bite at the rope. It was tougher than expected but if he didn't get through it fast then he would be suffering long term consequences. Namely being crippled enslaved or a serious case of being dead for which there was no known cure, except maybe true love or the power of friendship or something.

He was almost through the first cord. If he was lucky enough he would only need to cut one and hope the rest fall away. As he worked he listened for anypony that might be hanging back or stopping by to check on Joel. They didn't talk much and when they did it was indecipherable as they were too far way.

Finally he cut the first one and left hoof started to relax as the pain slowly died away. His left hoof was still tied to the rope but Joel thought that the rope fell off the cart. Unfortunately it didn't. It was still tied to the back of the cart with a base knot and he didn't realize it because he wanted to get out of there as fast as possible falling into a dead run in the opposite direction. As his he got whiplashed, he did a full flip as his hoof got pulled out from under him while simultaneously breaking. He cried out in pain as his tied up hoof was now broken. The rope had pulled off the trailer hitch causing a loud cracking sound that bounced all around in the mountain pass ecowing all around.

His captors having heard his cry of pain and trailer hitch breaking off turned and saw Joel a far distance away running on his three good legs with the rope trailing just behind him.

The one who had armor who Joel secretly decided to call Phill, because it suited him, shouted, "Seize him." and as many as who wanted another shot at getting a bonus started running for Joel.

Joel ran as fast as his three legs could carry him. Every rock that the hitch bounced off of shot pain strait through his body. He heard shouting as his began to gain on him. He had a head start but it wouldn't be long before they overtook him.

Hopefully Joel would find a bend and that bend had a bush and that bush the guys would over look and Joel could mabie escape. But such a bend with a bush didn't come \\. Instead it he found another dead end that surrounded Joel on both sides with vertical cliffs and just in front of him was an immediate drop down the mountain. "Uh now would be a nice time to teleport me back to my world stranger or whoever you are." he said to no one in particular.

He turned around just as the bandits blocked the entrance he just ran through. Joel had his badly hurt leg in the air as not to damage it more. Not wanting them to use the rope as leverage he began to gather it up using his mouth to grab and hoist it toward him and wrapped it around his body to keep close. He wanted to pass out his hoof hurt so much. "Just leave me alone," he shouted at them. Why did they even care so much.

Phil stepped through the small group of horses and said, "I already said. You're trespassing." Joel couldn't speak anymore. The awful sensation in his front leg was just too great. "Since you already cause us trouble I won't give you the satisfaction of accompanying us on our… 'journey'" He flicked his ear down and to the side again and his sword popped out wouldn't you know. "I will just finish the job right here." He began to walk over to Joel who's only option was a fall that surely would kill him.

Every step 'Phil' took the sword waved up and down as if to intimidate Joel. It was such a simple device. Was that one tube of iron the only way they fought? Did they just swing their body around to cut someone? "Don't worry," Phil said, "I'll grant you a quick death." he was still his sword distance away so Joel still couldn't get hit, but that margin was about to be closed. "Any Last words. Perhaps I might have a change in heart, but I really doubt it," he said mockingly.

"The only regret I have was ever looking at that face of yours." Joel spat on the ground. He felt stupid having to retreat to elementary school name calling crap, but he couldn't think of anything better to come up with on the spot. "Bitch" he finished.

His face contorted with anger, "I am not a female dog you swine." he did the whole rearing up thing you see the cowboys do and just befor his sword came down on Joel, it was displaced by an arrow which knocked 'Phil' off balance causing him to miss Joel.

Joel looked up to see a silhouette horse standing on a ledge much higher than them. The orange one spoke, "Hey you guys."

"What?" Phil said annoyed. He looked up and seemed astonished. "A Falconer," he said and his men started to back away slowly. "Don't retreat it's just one." Joel looked up and saw that this pony had a cloke on with two crossbows that were pressed to his side facing forward. There was two levers that protruded from the side of his bodie like how phil's did but they weren't swords. Joel also saw that when the strange pony moved his head, the crossbows would move according to that, and Joel noticed that there was what looked like a monocle in his one of his eyes.

The silhouette spoke again saying, "I hear there is a bounty on a group of bandits. Hiding somewhere up in these mountains." He spoke in a funny guy kinda way, "you wouldn't happen to know where they are would you?" Phil didn't answer. He stood his ground. He knew this 'Falconer' was just being a smart ass which is funny cause he was horse. "tisk tisk tisk," he said shaking his head. "No answer is still the wrong answer."

The mysterious horse flicked his left ear down and back and an arrow shot out the cross bow on his left side. Phil did his best to dodge it but still ended getting hit in his right shoulder. The other bandit ponies started to run out the entrance and were stopped dead in their tracks by another one intruded, but this one had a horn. "You're not leaving that easily." he withdrew two swords levitating them in midair.

They charged him in fear trying to escape but he fended them off with quick precise flicks of his blades, and one by one he cut them all down. Joel was still in a great deal of pain, and Phil looked over with the arrow still in his bodie and tried to swing his sword head, another arrow deflected the sword and Phil wiped it somehow getting knocked off balance and pushing Joel over the edge falling over the cliff.

Joel then found out the mountain was infact not out to get him as he and Phil landed on a conveniently placed, out-of-sight-from-where-they-were-looking ledge. Joel landing roughly coming down with a slam and luckily managed not to land on his broken hoof. Just as he picked himself up Phil had started to do the same. Assuming he would lash out at Joel the first chance he got, Joel took the broken hitch he had wrapped around his body, in his mouth and threw the end with the trailer hitch still attached and got it around phil's neck.

Joel then jumped on his back and took the end of the rope and yanked on it strangling phil. Phil pushed back slamming him against the stone wall, and Joel just yanked tighter. He bit down on his own tongue because he was self inflicting pain on his hoof that was still tied to it. Phil struggled by kicking and squirming but it was doing no good. Joel could feel the fight leaving Phils bodie and he wanted it to be over quickly, because he couldn't take much more eather.

Phil's body started to go limp and when he finally went out, Joel weakly pushed him off his bodie. In agony his vision faded, and the last thing he saw was the rocky mountains with their snow peaked tops and the blue skies the hung so far above them. Oh and he realized that they were ponies and not horses.

 **Intermission**

These are just sections to break apart the separate parts during long chapters and give some useful information like; currently this chapter is twenty pages long on eleven size font, but this first chapter is actually a merge of the first five chapters I published on fanfiction.

Actually fanfiction currently has eighteen of these chapters which will technically be reduced to four so if you're interested and you don't want to wait you can check that out under the same username and title name. It's unfinished and left on an ungodly cliff hanger which will be resolved in the next few weeks. I publish a chapter every week on FanF but FimF will have to wait just a bit longer.

This story gradually becomes less about Joel and more about the other characters because I don't want to force you to like some forced character like him but he is kinda here for fun to mix things up a little and provide some outside opinions on all of this stuff.

 **Part 2**

The snow was falling the fire was lit and all three of them were sitting around it thinking about what to do with the two survivors. It wasn't easy lifting them up off the ledge but they managed and as the wind blew along with some light snowfall Igneous said, "I think we should kill him." He looked at the others and said, "We don't know who he is and he could be dangerous."

Kara spoke, "We just kill him? I mean look at him he is passed out because of the pain." She pointed over to were Joel was laying passed out just like she had just said two seconds ago. They decided to make camp in the area they had fought and killed the bandits. Well most of the bandits, the one Joel strangled was still alive and tied up, and you thought Joel was a killer. "Why don't you just heal him."

"Because I won't waist my magic on some thief." Igneous was acting stern. "For all we know he could have killed other ponies befor."

"You just killed a bunch of bandits," Kara responded. "How are we all that different?"

"She has a point," Mace said, "How can we just determine someone's fate just because he was in the wrong place at the wrong time."

"We did this to protect others. Not for gain or some reward," Igneous snorted.

"He attacked him in defence," Kara argued.

"Why don't we ask the bandit leader if he knows anything?" interrupted Mace, "We could at least try to prove this guy is innocent if he is so willing to testify for him."

"We owe him that much that much."

"Owe him?" Igneous said, "We don't owe this guy anything."

Mace shook his head, "Let's just try to figure some things out before we jump to conclusions. Let's ask the guy we know is a bandit, and we will work from there."

"Come on Igneous," Kara pleaded.

For a second he sat there contemplating the decisions. Then he levitated a torch from the fire and stood up, "this wasn't part of the plan."

"It never is Igneous," said Mace. They walked around the corner and out onto the path where the bandit leader was tied up to a rock. "We going to ask you some questions. Do you understand?"

"I'm not talking." he said.

Igneous was having none of it. He unsheathed one his four sword and hit the bandit in the jaw with the hilt, "Don't waste my time."

"Right now this isn't about you. We want to know about the guy we saw you trying to kill," said Kara looking him straight in the eyes.

He spat blood on the ground. It was a pretty hard hit not to mentions the hilt had manny sharp points protruding from it unintentionally making unusable for handed beings. "I think you broke a few teeth," he said grunting.

Igneous levitated the tip of the blade just in front of the bandits neck, "Answer the question."

"I never seen him befor in my life," he said licking the blood from his lips.

"Then where did he come from?" asked Kara.

"I don't know. He just said he was lost. There was nothing of value on him and was just sitting there in the middle of the path."

"Why did you try to take him then?"

"To make a quick sum. I'm a bandit," he said laughing, "What did you expect you naive little hunters."

"Little?" Igneous said angrily.

Mace put his hoof on Igneous shoulder, "Igneous, calm down."

"You better listen to your friend," the bandit said with a smirk. "go ahead. Take me to in, hand me over to the keepers, I will just find a way to esc-"

Igneous slit his throat, cut the rope, arced the sword in a circle and plunged it into the bandit's chest, "Sorry but taking you to _in_ isn't part of the plan." He then then used the leverage of the sword to heave the bandit over the edge and send him falling down the mountain eventually to land in a pile with his oh so loyal comrades.

"Great now what." said Mace looking over the edge Igneous just threw the 'Phil' over, "You just had to kill the only survivor of the bandit party."

"Our job is done. The village needed our help and we gave it," Igneous said as he began to walk towards the campfire with the torch still levitating so everyone could see.

"Well now a complete stranger who is lost needs our help." Kara said reminding him. "Are you just going to kill him?"

"If I have to," Igneous responded.

"Why do you have to act like that," asked Mace, "You don't need to kill off every injustice. There is a thing called mercy. You might like it," Mace said nudging him a little.

"Who needs mercy when you got these right here." he unsheathed two of his four and spun them around his body in a nice display that looked like two spinning blender blades.

"Still Igneous we need to figure out what we're going to do with him."

"Why don't you carry him," Kara asked

"Why do I have to carry him?" he sheathed his swords back into their hilts.

"Because you killed most of the party anyway. This is your reward for oh so exceptional valor." Mace said with a smile.

"You gotta heal him first." Kara said.

"Why do I have to do everything," He said shaking his head.

"You're the only one who can," Make reminded him.

"Fine but my light magic isn't strong, but I will see what I can do. Don't expect a fine job from me."

"Did the books I give you not help you at all?" Kara asked. "If you got better at dark magic you wouldn't even need to carry around a shield," she added.

"It would be a lot easier with a teacher," Igneous said trying to fucose his light magic to heal the broken hoof. "To bad we have to rediscover everything in Carridian," he became silent as he tried to concentrate harder.

Kara and Mace walked over the fire so Igneous could concentrate his magic on healing the stranger. "I can't wait for team Coehin to get back. It's been what a year?" ask Kara.

"It appears it has. We kept our side of Noriphmy safe from... 'threats' and apparently bandits too," Mace said as slipped his hood over his head so that he could be warmer from the cold night air.

"Me and my sister have so much to catch up on. I hope she brings at least one book on magic if not more," Kara opened up her wings so that the fire could warm them.

"Why do you care so much about magic. You're a pegasus."

Kara lowered her head. "Even so it's fun to study," she said.

"Speak for yourself," said Igneous still there with his head down trying to heal the stranger.

"What are you going to do when your father get back Mace?"

"I don't know but believe me I am just excited as you. We might just talk for a while," Mace said. "I bet he has got a few more stories to tell."

After he said this a very loud sigh came from Igneous, "That was harder than I though. His hoof was pretty bad," He levitated his limp body onto his own back, "he must have been in a great deal of pain."

"Where are you going Igneous," asked Mace.

"Yea, shouldn't we rest?" Kara asked.

"Rest? Why would we rest when team Coehin is coming back tomorrow morning." Igneous said looking serious look. "I'm not going to lose, especially to Kohligan." He then walked around the corner and out of sight of the two taking a torch with him into the night.

Kara and Mace looked at eachother and he said, "Igneous isn't going to wait is he?"

"He still thinks this whole thing is some sort of proving grounds and he won't let up, not even to him." She gave a quick nod, stood up and said, "We should go." real quick and without another word they stood up and left for Igneous. If they hurryed they would probably beat team Coehin to the village and Igneous would have some sense of pride.

They hiked down the mountain using paths with little words between one another they didn't need to speak much and there was nothing that could really warrant a good conversation save it for the knocked out stranger they were lugging. The light snowstorm had receded itself and the sun began to poke over the mountain tops just as they had reached the base of the mountain.

Mace suggested that they should make something to rag Joel with so quickly they salvaged two branches and Mace used his cloak as something for Joel to lay in between as it held the two sticks together. They then hooked the makeshift stretcher to Igneous and they continued on from there.

Joel this entire time was knocked out and was dreaming or what he guessed to be dreaming. He couldn't see anything, only blackness. He could feel things going on. There was shouting and the sounds of whoever or whatever being cut off. Someone was talking to him, to Joel. But he couldn't hear it because it sounded too far away. His hands felt like they grabbed something soft and it gave away easily when he squeezed. He could smell smoke. Not fire but electrical smoke. He heard himself say something but it wasn't Joel's voice. This one was deep dark haunting and full of hatred, but he knew and felt that it must have been his. He said very slowly, "what if my god said it was my duty to kill you. All of you." Then he heard himself laughed and then their was no sensation or. Not the feeling of holding something soft in his hands or the faint sounds of shouting.

Joel woke up to find himself in a wooded area. The pain down in his hoof had gone down considerably. Infact he didn't feel any kind of pain. Curious as to why he looked at it and found it was bandaged and that he was on an improvised stretcher made wooden sticks and cloth. He looked over his shoulder to see that he was being dragged by a the heavily armored horse that took on all the bandits with his levitating swords.

Joel tried to sit up but wasn't strong enough to do it just yet, "I wouldn't be moving if I were you. Not when you're sporting something such as that." He recognised that voice. It was the voice of the silhouette that had intervened at the last minute. He was pointing to Joel's broken hoof. It had a bandage with a brace attached to it to keep it steady. "You hurt yourself pretty badly back there with the runnin with the mountain bandits. What were you doing up there if you weren't planning on getting yourself killed."

He wasn't wearing his cloak he saw earlier and it took a moment for him to figure out that they were using his cloak for the improvised stretcher. His crossbows he saw earlier were now collapsed and flatten to his bodie. He also saw that his monocle from earlier wasn't some peace of glass but a sight, one you use for aiming.

After he got all these barings he answered saying, "I kind of just found myself there, you know?"

The unicorn spoke this time saying, "Pft found yourself there. What did you sleep walk. Gone on some adventure I presume?"

Joel didn't know how to explain the 'favor' he did for the man back in the alley, sounds a little creepy, but somehow about half a dollar in change was enough to buy him an other worldly experience, and not the kind with drugs. He avoided the question by asking a different one, "Who are you guys? Where am I?"

Savior silhouette horse answers saying, "We are Falconers, but if you wanna know our name, he is Igneous and I'm Mace." He gestured to the sky and added, "Her name is Kara."

Joel looked up to see a flying pegasus. She was up pretty high up so he couldn't make out anything other than that she had wings, and every so often Joel caught a glint of sunlight that bounced off of her. Probably some armor or metal she had on. "I didn't see him during the fight. What did he do the whole time."

"I had 'her,'" Igneous corrected. "stay back, because she couldn't fight in that type of environment," He had a very matter of fact tone in his voice. "The space we were fighting was to tight and she wouldn't be able to make a quick pass in and out. The idea was by my design and it could not have gone better."

"Always gotta take credit for your own plan, don't you Igneous." He didn't respond, "yea he is the leader of this team anyways."

"That's true, and I also make the plans, and then you both completely ignore them." He said.

"So what did you guys do with the bandits?" asked Joel

"Killed them," was all Igneous said. He was really good at sounding intimidating, but hearing that, Joel didn't need to know details of that statement. They could have done anything they wanted, burned them, buried them or just left them. It didn't really matter if in the end they were just dead. Joel was still laying on the stretcher that Igneous was pulling and he was alive. He didn't want to feel like a baby so he tried to crawl off. "Hey don't try anything, you're still badly hurt."

"But I don't feel any pain." Joel respawned.

"That's because when you were out I took the pain away, and fixed the bone together" Igneous said.

"How though? Did you like, give me medicine?" Joel asked apparently still wanting to stand, but Mace pushed him back down.

"Magic. Don't you know anything about minor healing spells, or just magic at all." Mace asked.

Joel really had no idea about this world so he would just have to find out more for himself, "Let's just say i'm not from around here." They were silent for a while and Joel asked, "So what do Falconers do?"

"You really aren't from around here are you." asked Mace, "Do you want to explain?" He said looking over to Igneous.  
"I would rather we just get to the village." Igneous said.

"Fine. Us Falconers are hunters," he started.

"Hunters?" asked Joel, "What like hunting game and stuff?"

"Don't insult me," Igneous warned.

"Don't mind him," Mace reassured Joel, "We are monster hunters normally but we also do a little bounty hunts from time to time."

"Like the people back there?"

"Yes but we make sure that there some of the worst. We don't want the money we want to protect others." Joel kinda had to just sit there as Mace walked along side him. The trees were brightly green and the forrest kinda looked nice.

"Protect others, I know what you mean." he said a little solemnly.

"What's that, why are you so sad all of a sudden?"

"Nothing, just speaking out loud." Joel didn't feel like making eye contact as he said this.

Mace could tell he was trying to hide something but he didn't touch on it.

"Don't worry," Igneous interrupted, "every one has got a story to tell. Weather or not you would like to relive it is up to you."

"Relive? More like move past," he answered, "I need to start over. Move on because I'm tired of the past."

"I know how you feel," Igneous said. Even when he talked he still sounded intimidating, "Some things you just want out of the way and to be rid of. But you can't always get what you want."

"We all have our reasons why we joined." said Mace. "Being a Falconer isn't bad, you get to adventure all around Caridian with almost no care whatsoever."

"We still got order Igneous we have to fulfill Mace," Igneous reminded him.

"It's the idea that your free Igneous that makes the experience all the better.

"How can I become a Falconer, is there a process? Some exam because I'll do it."

"You show up. Simple as that. The hard part is the training and lifestyle." They kept walking with Igneous pulling Joel quietly as Mace kept explaining. "You have to be able to carry yourself for miles without a break. Most of the food you get while on a hunt comes from scavenging. You need to learn how to track locate and kill any monster you have been sent for."

"It doesn't sound easy," Joel said.

"Not really, but you do get a team of at least three," Mace reassured. "You watch eachothers backs and never leave one to die. No matter how bad a situation might be you always come back for the fallen." He let out a sigh, "I don't need to get a philosophical right now."

"Sounds hard." Joel said. What would it be like to be out in the wilderness with nothing but your buddies to watch your back. Its sounds dangerous and absurd but an experience willing to be had, "But I would be willing to do it."

"Slow down, we only just met you, and your hoof isn't all that good yet." said Igneous.

"I'm fine really and I'm not a bad guy," again he tried to sit up but was pushed back down. Joel being annoyed said, "Can I just stand up. Didn't he say said he used magic to fix my broken hoof?"

"I healed it but it could still break. My magic isn't exactly strong. I can't even summon my own weapons but can only heal minor injuries."

"And your broken hoof wasn't exactly minor either." Mace continued for Igneous, "especially since you damaged it trying to strangle that brute. I could have taken him out I just needed one shot." Funny since it took him like two but Joel guessed he was probably going for style points. Points like none other in existence and worth nothing but to that who experienced it.

"Well I guess I wasn't thinking straight." Joel said, "I just saw that his guard and attention was down, I felt threatened so I just had to… kill him," when he said kill him he made a strangling motion. "I wasn't looking to die that day so it was either him or me, and I chose me."

Mace laughed at that, "You know, You really could be a Falconer with that type of attitude."

"Oh really, and here I thought I didn't have the right kind of tragic upbringing or backstory to be a hero."

"Our upbringing is just what motivates us. Anyone can be a Falconer" said Mace.

Hearing his Joel then felt like he could be a Falconer. He thought of how he could go on an adventure. That man in the ally said he would give him a second chance, and a life full of dangerous adventures around every corner, who wouldn't want to spend their second life on it? "Make me one." he said abruptly.

Mace looked surprised, "You really wanna be be a Falconer?"

"Yes. I do." Even if Joel had to take time to heal he would do this. He wasn't going to waste this life working in some boring restaurant or shop or anything like that. He was going to do this even if it ended up killing him. "I'm certain of it."

"We can get right on it then. Preparation is important but for now you need to rest."

Joel was still laying in the makeshift stretcher being pulled by Igneous. As bad is his manhood probably felt, he didn't mind much. He used this time to ponder over the recent events that had taken place recently. He thought of how he strangled that one guy and he wasn't too proud of it. Obviously asphyxiation takes more than just the person to pass out to be pronounced dead. You need at least five minutes of constant restraint to kill someone and it could have been longer for an animal, but Joel still couldn't help but wonder. Did he kill that stallion with his bear hands? Well hoofs in this case.

As he thought they had walked in silence for some time that a pegasus landed just in front of Igneous. It was Kara and she spoke saying, "I spotted a monster just south west from our position and not to far from either."

Igneous responded saying, "great, I thought nothing exciting was going to happen all day."

"Whoa wait, what do you mean monster. I thought you said they were hardly any left." Joel said trying to turn to look a her.

"Doesn't mean you'll never come by one," Mace said stretching his back. He was getting ready for a fight.

"Alright stranger you need to get off," Igneous said as he levitated the higher end of the stretcher dumping Joel on the ground.

"Wait you're not actually going after it," asked Joel.

"Its our job," said Kara.

"Didn't you just say you wanted to be a Falconer Joel?" asked Mace.

"Yea but I need training, don't I?"

Mace nodded his, "yes you do," he put his hoof around Joel's shoulder and said, "and this is the way we do it. Just imagine," Mace began. "You fighting to the death with a monster three times your size only for you to end up triumphant standing over the corps of the predator."

"Or-or and stay with me," Joel said slightly pushing Mace away, "Now this is crazy but imagine me. Dead. and torn apart with the monster standing triumphantly over me. How does that sound?"

Mace nodded and said, "You'll be fine. Igneous?"

"What?" he answered.

"Dequip me, and put all my equipment on Joel here." Mace said.

A minute later Joel had Maces double crossbow suit on. "This idea of yours Mace is gonna get us killed," Igneous said shaking his head.

"We will be fine," said Mace, "I will guide Joel though how to do this and when we finally kill the monster Joel automatically gets the first rank in Falconering."

"Guys, guys can't we wait till I at least know what i'm doing? This is crazy. I'm gonna die."

Igneous withdrew one of his swords and checked the blade and said, "That's the fun part," he sheathed it again and then turned his attention to kara and said, "ok you lead me to its last know position. Mace will catch up when Joel gets over himself."

"Ok, follow closely," she said as she took off into the sky with Igneous running as fast as he could after her.

Jeol was getting increasingly nervous. He could get pounded into nothing and these guys didn't seem to care, or they were just used to it. There were no monsters on earth only in creepypastas, movies and Darksouls. Mace must have seen his nervousness although Joel wasn't trying to hard hide it, "Don't worry," mace said, "the Crossbow class is the safest one there is. You just gotta keep your distance and out of sight."

"What if we are seen?" Joel asked looking around.

"Again you just gotta keep you distance and out of sight," he repeated. He then turned started to run, "Come on, you're the one with my crossbows."

Not wanting to be in the woods alone were monsters might be lurking, Joel decided it was best to go with Mace. The gear that Joel now had on was heavier than he expected but he kept a manageable pace. He did catch up to Mace who seemed to be running without a problem. He talked to him in short burst of breaths, "So what are we supposed to do when we get there."

"Don't worry," he said with an even voice even as he ran, "I will make sure nothing too bad happens. I've been doing this ever since I was a colt." When they finally did catch up with the others they were hiding around a bush closely observing as the beast did it's doing.

When Joel looked he saw that it walked on all fours despite having sharply clawed hands. It head looked thickly plated and it had spikes going down the spine of his back. It was a dark black with brown spots in different places. It was big and it looked scary. "So what's the plan Igneous," Mace asked.

Without looking back he said, "It's a handed monster, I haven't seen one in all my life." He did another check and said, "I get its attention and fight close and up front, Kara attacks from above, and you find its weak points and go from there."

"Um," Joel interrupted, "how will I know what its weak points are."

Igneous must've forgotten that Joel was massively inexperience, "oh, just shoot it with explosives then."

"Explosives!?" Joel asked. He took a nervous look at the equipment he had on.

"Ok good. Ready, set go," Mace said, and immediately Kara took off into the sky, and Igneous started in a dead run at the monster who was about half a football field away. Mace put his attention on Joel, "Ok this is how the equipment works," he said talking a little fast, "listen up because this is important."

"Ok I'm listening," Joel said.

Mace pointed at the chest piece that Joel had on. It had a circle in the middle, "Ok that there is how you deploy the crossbows. All you do is you just hit it."

In the distance Joel heard Igneous shouting taunts at the monster trying to get its attention, "Hey over here you unutterably boorish filcher." It turned around angrily and revealed its snake like yellow eyes.

"Hey hey listen," Mace said bring his attention back, "Push the button."

Joel slammed his hoof to his chest and the arrows popped up so fast it made Joel unwillingly jump. To cercles, one in front of the other, lowered themselves down into Joel's right eye. When Joel moved his head the one furthest away moved slightly in that direction. "Ok," he continued, "This site right here show you were the crossbows are aiming. There connected to your head and aim roughly where you look."

"Seems easy," he said as he looked back at what Igneous was doing. He was just standing there and the monster was still walking up to him.

Mace continued at an even tone, "Ok these bracelets on either of your hoofs control what shot your fire. These two levers in front of you are to reload your shot, and to fire you simply flick your ear back." Joel was still trying to understand it but Joel pushed him forward to face the monster and he said, "Ok start shooting it."

Igneous drew two of his four swords and levitated them just in front of his face as the monster looked like it was about to attack. "Just shoot it?" He charged the beast at full speed with his falling behind to his backside.  
It took a swing at Igneous with its right hand and he dodge into it and out of the way. He came to a sliding stop skidding in between the legs of the monster and as he he did he wiped the sword around slicing the ankle of the beast with two precise strikes in one motion. It let out a roar and much quicker than Igneous expected it turned on a dime delivering a backhand that sent him flying into the trees.

'Oh shit,' Joel thought to himself. He took a shot by flicking his right ear back and the right crossbow fired sending a arrow flying at the monster's chest. It bounced off without it even knowing it got hit in the first place. "It didn't penetrate Mace."

Kara came down on the monster's back and started to claw at it aggressively, with the metal claws she had equipped on her hoofs. It fell to its hands and began to shake aggressively causing Kara to briefly flutter off the monster to avoid its agitation.

"Then shoot is weak spots," he simply said. "There, near the joints like its neck and inside of its knees and elbows." Kara had landed on its back again but she soon retreated again as it rolled itself over and leapt after her clawing at the air. Igneous however was back on his hoofs and it appeared that he connected the two swords into one and was running with the tower shield, that was just on his back, levitating in front of him protecting his whole body from any frontal attacks.

Joel pulled down the right lever and it loaded another shot into the flight groove. He fired both crossbows this time but they, like the last round bounced off. "Its armor's too strong," Joel said.

"Fire an explosive round," he responded, "Just twist the bracelet to the explosive symbol."

Joel looked down at the golden bracelets that were around his hoofs. They had four symbols and Joel didn't even know which one was which, "and what symbol would that be?"

"Just, here," he said frustrated as he took his hoof and twisted the bracelet himself. He pulled down the lever for him replacing the old shot with the new explosive shot. "Fire!"

Igneous was still fighting the monster. He rolled left out of another downward attack and the beast swiped its arm towards him but Igneous stopped it by planting the shield into the ground. He jumped around the arm dove under its chest and tried to stab it by levitating his swords upward but it didn't penetrate. Igneous being vulnerable where he was back stepped through his legs and now found himself behind the monster once again. It swiped its arm around just like it did last time and Igneous, expecting it, jumped backwards causing the monster to overswing.

With the monster now off ballanced Igneous jumped onto its back using the tail as sure footing. He got to the leaped to the very top and began to aggressivly stab the monster were ever he could, but his blades never penetrated anything. The beast then reached its hand up and grabbed hold of Igneous by the body it slammed him onto the ground pinning him undernith its massive claws. His swords and shield fell as his concentration was broken and wind knocked out of him. Joel then fired the right crossbow. Just as the beast was about to take a bite out of Igneous the explosive arrow hit it right in the face. It reeled back as the arrow exploded causing the monster releasing Igneous from its grip. Igneous then gathered his dropped swords and shield back to him as he partially retreated with a slight gimp in his step. He still wasn't done with the monster, because he was still taunting and shouting at it saying, "Is that all you got you miserably lecherous oaf!"

"Ok we need to relocate," said Mace, "That's rule one, because you never want your position to be compromised."

Joel fired his left crossbow but it contained a normal arrow which bounced off the monsters scales harmlessly. "That's a rule I can follow," Joel said reluctantly.

They began to quickly move in a wide arc around the fight that was happening between Igneous, Kara, and the monster. Kara managed to land on its back again but wasn't doing much damage. She frustratingly was doing her best trying to stab it with her left hoof, "It's armor's too strong," she said as she repeatedly kept plunging her claws down upon the monster.

Igneous tried to swing at its elbow but it lifted it out of the way then slammed it down were Igneous was standing. He raised his shield and managed to bring it to a stop keeping him from getting crushed, "go for its eyes." It raised its arm and brought both fist down upon Igneouses shield pushing down with much more force than before that the shield began to be pressed down upon Igneouses body.

Suddenly it reeled back once more and went for a low sweep and Igneous back stepped behind a tree and watched it get obliterated by a left swing from the beast sending splinters of wood flying everywhere. Kara took off saying, "got it."

Joel and Mace got into their new positions, "alright keep shooting it and we will do the same thing."

"Right," said Joel and he fired another explosive round that hit the beast in the chest.

Kara was diving for the monster from above. Her wings folded in and bodie pointed as she dove down. When it seemed she was going to crash into the ground she opened up her wings and flew right by the monster's face cutting the right eye wide with her bladed wings as she straifed on by faster than it could detect.

The monster fell back as it held its wounded face. Slowly it stumbled back onto all fours as it tried to regain its bearings. Igneous fell back a little so as to not get hit if it decided to unexpectedly lash out with new found anger. Again he taunted it saying, "Get up you sickly uncivilized derelict? I'm not done with you yet."

As it slowly got back up, another explosive arrow shot it in the shoulder. With much rage it picked up a boulder and threw it at Igneous. He dodge out of the way by rolling to the side but he didn't see the monster follow that attack up by charging straight at Igneous. He quickly planted his shield down to the floor but the beasts thickly plated head smashed through it causing the shield to go flying out of Igneouses range of influence. He plowed through Igenous knocking him far off to the side, and continued for the source of the explosive shot.

"Its coming for us," Joel shouted as the monster smashed through a tree twenty yard in front of them sending wood flying there way.

"Get out of the way!" They both jumped back as the monster smashed through the log they were just hiding behind. Joel got thrown onto his back and the monster was standing just above him. He could feel its warm breath and the strength of its muscles. Joel looked it in the eyes as it opened its mouth ready to bit down on him. As Joel braced himself for the inevitable and his right crossbow fired sending an explosive arrow straight into the monster's one good eye and exploding on the inside of its head causing a dull thud sound to come of it.

Blood poured out of its mouth and nose as it collapses just in front of Joel. "Holly shit I killed it." Joel said as adrenaline was still pumping through his blood.

Mace having already recovered from being thrown off poked its face with his hoof a few times, "I think you did. You shot that thing in the eye?"

Kara landed on top of the monster's body, "Mace that was a foolish idea to give him your equipment. It almost got us killed!"

"Well he is the reason we killed it. This things armor was too strong," Igneous said as he slowly walked up on every one. "I would like to harvest it but right now we got more important things."

"So now what?" asked Joel as he pushed the button on his chest making the crossbows collapse and flatten to his bodie.

Mace turned to look at him, "I think now we make you a Falconer. You did it, you killed your first monster."

He took a deep breath. That close call was too close for Joel, "That was much easier than I expected."

"Just be lucky your still alive," Igneous said as he mounted his shield on his back, "let's get back to the village. Team Coehin may just have beaten us there by now."

"Ooh I can't wait," Kara said as she slowly took off.

"Who is team Coehin?" Joel asked Mace.

"Team Coehin is a team that consist of Kohligan Sirvidian, Nimbus Brophil and my father," he said as he begun to walk, "The Nimbus is Karas sister and the other guy is Igneouses father."

"I guess your all excited to see them." Joel said catching up to Mace. They left the monsters corps sitting there. It would eventually rot but there was nothing they could do except let nature take its course. Besides it is better for the forest.

"I wouldn't speak for Igneous on that matter, but as for me I am." He wore a pleasant smile on his face when he said this, "My dad taught me everything that I know about being a Falconer, ever since I was a little colt that is, and because of it I am the best monster tracker there is."

Joel doubted that a little, "Really? The best monster tracker there is?"

Igneous walked on ahead, and with Kara flying somewhere above they left Joel and Mace to talk alone, "Let me tell you a story Joel. Get comfortable because this might last till we get to the village."

 **Intermission**

This was supposed to be heavily edited but after a while it just started to turn into a big mess and IDK I just get nervous. About the only big part I took out was the first part which you can still find on the FanF were you actually see Joel before he gets brought here.

I largely blame the first chapter for the story not having gotten better view counts because I think it gave people the wrong impression on what the story was supposed to be in the first place which is a collection of characters and not just the one Joel.

I named him Joel because it was the most bland boring name I could come up with anyway. He's not meant to be special just normal.

 **Part 3**

My story starts with my father's own story. When he was just a young colt he lived in a village that was protected by highly experienced Falconers. Now at this village was one of the few that could manufacture the metal Hycrome. Hycrome does not erode and can easily be made into a flexible metal which is ideal when it comes to making the Falconers crossbows like the one I use today.

One day the village was attacked by a hideous handed beast that had no eyes but could see perfectly. It attacked every building and every pony without remorse. The Falconers put up a valiant fight but the monster was too swift, and one by one each one got torn apart.

My father had said he saw it with his own eyes as the Varin the pegasus tried to attack it from above. Although it wasn't looking, the monster had known he was coming from above and snached him out of the air ripping his wings off and crushing Varin's lower body with its head against the side of a boulder.

It then dropped him down as arrows flew in from behind it. It left Varin to die in agony as it stocked off to make short work of the two remaining Falconers in an equally grueling fashion. After it had killed the last two, Goffiphry the unicron and Arishma the earth pony, it then simply left.

My dad had explained the sight to me. He had always said the first glimpse of the cruel bloodthirsty world of Carridian is forever the worst anypony will ever experience. He watched as Varin, this once great stallion who had lived proud life and was the symbol of protection and safety for many ponies for many years, be reduced to nothing but a bloody pulp.

His comrades had died but he stayed alive for an hour after the fight, unable able to move, and unable to speak. He said how every one who could bear the sight had said his eyes were wide open the whole time as tears poured out of his face in a continuous stream. No pony could help him because he was already dead.

The monster had destroyed some buildings but nothing too severe. The lose of the Falconers was devastating but they could do nothing but continue on with their lives in hopes that a new team of Falconers would show up to protect them.

A few months had past and a new monster had come but it wasn't a beast. This monster was Merick the bandit leader. He and his group of bandits raided the village to steal the Hycrome metal in which it produced to make deadly weapons for their own devious use. They slaughtered the villagers and burnt the mining village to the ground.

My dad had escaped by himself and watched as his friends and family were killed one by one. He had never left the village and because of it he became lost in the wilderness, but he didn't give up my dad survived.

During his first few days he had fashioned a double edge spear by taking a broken branch and rubbing it for hours against a rock with nothing but his mouth to hold it in place until both ends had been smoothed to a deadly tip. He hunted and killed rabbits and squirrels by sneaking up on them with silent movements and stabbing the with the spear he wielded with nothing but his mouth.

Weeks of hunting using a spear and his mouth made him the only earth pony to wield a bladed weapon better than any other non-unicorn could.

He had found his way back to his village only to find that it had been overtaken by the bandits that had attacked it. They had started making their own Hycrome to replicate Falconer weaponry.

He sat in the woods and waited till night to infiltrate and liberate what was once his home. Using the skills he developed to sneak up on rabits he did the same to those on guard.

In the dawn of the morning they found that the two who were on guard had disappeared without a word. When day turned to night they had doubled the amount of security only to find that in the morning there was none. No bodie, only blood.

Thirty six bandits had been there but after five days, a mutiny and more disappearances the ten remaining bandits each slaughtered one another out of fear in the final hours of the sixth night till only two remained.

They stood at each end neither of them taking his eye off the other when the door suddenly opened. It was him, the colt who had his village pillaged by honorless ponies.

One of the two immediately attacked him but my father, using his mouth, deflected the fixed sword with one end of his spear and drove the other end into the bandit's throat. He fell dead as suddenly and efficiently as the rest.

He then approached the last stalyon who was cornered with fright and ended his life right there and then. There were thirty six lives but now only one remained and that was him. He had found his way back to another village where he told his story. They had known that the ponies of his village had been killed but they had not the man power to liberate it themselves.

As word got out that my father single handedly killed a bandit group with nothing but a wooden spear the nearest Falconer group took him in and started training him immediately. As the years passed by he became one of the greatest Falconers. He trained a small group of individuals and taught them how to fight same the way he did. There disbanded now for using murder tactics that most thought were too brutal. There was no punishment because they did it for Noriphmy but they didn't let his skills and abilities go to waist. He became a Falconer and he quickly became the leader of team Coehin and is to this day still considered the best there is despite the fact that he is an earth pony.

Now I had the honor of being born to this hero. When I was old enough to begin training he wasted no time. We would spend days just the two of us out in the woods. He taught me how to track monsters by bringing me back to places where he and team Coehin had previously killed a monster and we would trace its tracks as far back as we could to find a place of origin.

Although we never did, these tracking missions had honed my skills, and now just a single broken leaf is enuff to lead me for a mile.  
Joel was listening intently and absorbing everything that Mace was saying, but he had one question. "Can I meet your father, he sounds more interesting than you."

Mace laughed at the sudden unexpected question, "true. That's true he is. I can agree with that."

"I hope you guys are done talking because we're here." Igneous said talking back to them.

"Well Mace I thought you were gonna take center stage for this one. How come your story isn't as great as your dads?" Joel said.

"Ha," he muttered, "I have done some great things in the short amount of time I had to live, but my father had had far greater adventures," they walked up the stone path and into the entrance of the village. "What we all seek is a legacy to be remembered by. That is what I'm after and until then I will keep looking."

"I should probably get started on my own then," Joel said. As Jeol looked around the houses that were built were made out of stone wood and straw. As they walked into the village Joel noticed how most of the buildings and houses were made of wood and straw. It reminded him of medieval movies he used to watch as a kid. There were more commoners walking about doing their daily do's. "So…" Joel began, "where is the famous team Coehin?"

Mace looked around then called out to Igneous saying, "do you see them?"

"If any of us would its Kara," he answered.

They walked to the center of the village only to find that team Coehin still wasn't there. "You think there just late?" Joel asked still looking for some other armored horses other than them.

"They could be, but it's not like them." Mace answered.

"If anything it's because they're killing some beast," Igneous said.

Kara just landed close by and said, "I don't see them. Perhaps there just late."

"It's what we were thinking," Joel said.

"Sadly you're mistaking," said a voice from down the street. They all turned to see a blood covered stalyon with what looked like a heavy helmet and two long swords around his side.

Kara looked at him with worriedly "what do you mean? Where is my sister?"

He straightened himself although he looked exhausted and said, "Team Coehin won't be coming back to day. They were needed down south." That surprised Joel because he mistook the blood as a bad omen that 'team Coehin had been slaughtered,' or 'team Coehin had been killed in action.' Something like that.

"Are we allowed to know why. Or is this classified business," Mace suggested.

"Classified, no doubt about it," he answered. "but Kara, your sister sent me to give you this book." His satchel opened and an old looking book floated its way out and in front of this stranger.

"Well a new book is nothing new," Mace joked.

"From what she told me this one is very important you see." He walked it over to kara and she read the front cover.

From her expression she understood the strange writing. She put her hoof over the top of it and said, "we should probably take this inside."

They were now sitting in a cottage that they had appeared to own. It was dimly lit and had a table and a few chairs here and there and a book shelf off to the side. Joel didn't even know why he needed to be there he only killed one monster and now he was Falconer all of a sudden. Talk about a swift change in pacing. The new guy had said his name was Hilliph as they entered in. As everyone got settled and situated, Mace asked, "So why are we gathered here today? I'm sure this is important."

Hilliph stood across the table and said, "Me and team Coehin recently had been working together to uncover more of our lost valley, finding ancient ruins and trying to piece things back together to paint a broader past." he laid the book down on the table, "most people think that we hunted monsters and recovered magic books for the capital to study and dissect." Hilliph continued, "What most don't know is we actually are trying to uncover Hexer ruins."

"Hexer ruins," Mace asked, "Hexers were never a civilisation, they could not have had ruins."

"So what makes this one so special?" Igneous asked as he was sitting in the corner.

"From our archives we have gathered over the years we were led to believe that they did infact have some sort of civilisation. What makes this book so special is that this all but confirms it."

He opened it to a page with what looked like to be a map, "From what Karas sister was able to translate it apparently leads straight to where they had built a fortress."

"Let me guess," Mace began, "You want us to take you there and go spelunking for some Hexer magic?" Redundant because spelunking was cave exploring and not fortress raiding.

"We can only get stolen magic," Igneous said, "Raw magic comes straight from a Majin. You can't preserve it."

"It's the stolen Magic we're after, that's true but the magic it's been stolen from is a different story" he said, "This stolen magic is the white Magic taken from Aminus when he was defeated."  
"Aminus," asked Joel. The name sent a small shiver up his spine as if he just glanced at a really juicy spider slowly crawling over his back.

"A dragons stolen white Magic?" Kara asked. "I thought it was destroyed when aminus was destroyed."

"You can't destroy stolen magic. It takes a crystal form that cannot be broken."

"Hexers could I'm sure," she mumbled having her extensive knowledge of magic diminished there and then.

"Shouldn't we just leave it," Mace asked, "we could be endangering every pony with the most powerful white magic ever."

"If we leave it there is a good chance a group called the Gekies Getuies might take it first. They had infiltrated our archives and from inside reports there are after this white magic as well. Their final intentions are not clear, but simply leaving it would be even more dangerous."

For a second everyone was quite, "What's the plan then after we retrieved Aminus Stolen Magic?" asked Igneous.

Hilliph sighed, "I don't know, but we got orders from the capital to retrieve it and bring it back. Possibly," he said shaking his head. "For dissection as well."

"You know what," Mace began, "It shouldn't be hard. Monsters encounters are low for the time being and I'm not going to see it be stolen by some common thieves."

"I agree," Igneous said.

"What about Joel, he is not trained. We should leave him he so useless," Kara said looking directly at Joel.

"Well that hurts," Joel said.

"Pft I can train him during the mission," Said Mace snarkily. "Leave no stallion behind or left out of a great adventure. Besides Noriphmy needs more Falconers. We've got a few extra suits lying around anyway." He said glancing around himself to what looked like a closet. "Be better than collecting dust."

"Great, we leave tomorrow morning." Igneous said.

"We should get are rest." said Hilliph. "I need to wash this blood off me. Who knew Retoritus blood dried so quickly."


	2. Act 2 Chapters 6-8

**Chapter 2**

"You're not looking too good," Mace said as they were walking through the woods unbound to any trail to lead them.

Joel cranked his neck, "Maybe it's because it's way too early."

"Get used to it because this is a week long trip of walking," Igneous said. "You could use this time to get into shape and sharpen your senses."

"Maybe you could learn to summon your shield," Mace joked.

"We could all learn something new," Hilliph muttered as they trotted along along, "A week is a long time. We shouldn't waste it."

"Were even is this Hexer fortress?" asked Mace.

"From what the book says it is in the Condoon forest," Kara answers. "Knowing where it is is the easy part, but finding it the hard part."

"Do you know how we do that? The Condoon forest isn't exactly small in size." Joel said.

"All that sand is going to get into my armor, you know how long it's going to take to get that out," Igneous said slightly annoyed.

"Look all we got to do is line the northern mountains up with some rock formation then the book says it's literally in the cracks of a canyon just below."

"Who hides an entire fortress inside a canyon?" asked Joel.

"Perhaps some one who does not want to be found so easy," Hilliph said from up front, "Hexers had the most powerful magic there was during the Great Rising. If any of it fell into the wrong hoofs that would spell disaster for every pony. We were lucky enough that the Hexers never harmed any pony when they were around."

Kara asked, "Who would be able to steal from a Hexer?"

"I sure there was plenty of other ponies who tried to steal their magic. None of which are alive now." A breeze came in that rustled the leaves a bit making the forest look more lively. "Lets try not to talk so much. This trip will take a while."

They had walked silently until none and were taking an hour long break. Well you could call it a break, "Ok Joel you may have shot a bulls eye on that monster but I'm just going to call that luck."

Joel said "I agree with the whole luck thing. So what do I got to do now?"

Mace pushed the button on his ceast peace and his crossbows sprung up on either side of him. He turned towards a tree that was off in the distance, flicked his ear back and fired an arrow. It flew through the air and stuck in the trunk of a tree. "Your this week you will be trying to split the arrow from this distance." He pushed down on the lever that protrudes forward and loaded another shot.

"I don't know, that seems a little far," Joel said as he squinted trying to see the arrow Mace fired.

Mace pushed Joel's button on his chest piece and the earthener suit sprung up, "It's how my dad taught me and it's how i'm going to teach you."

Joel cringed a little when the cables around his ear stiffened around it, "this trigger mechanism isn't very comfortable."

"Don't worry, you'll get used to it," he responded. "Now you already know how the thing works." He pushed both Joel's left and right sights down over his eyes.

"Why do I need two sights?" Joel asked.

He answered, "Because you're not used to it and the crossbows aim differently. The foursight is the dynamic sight because it moves when you look in any direction up, down left, right. The sight closest to your eye is fixed and stays put. Just line them up and that's where the arrow fires."

"Um, ok. I refuse to be confused," he said.

"Ok. First make sure you have a normal sho-" Joel fired and when it hit the tree it exploded with a loud thundering boom. The tree blew up into splinters and the top toppled over and fell with a thud.

Igneous called out from a distance, "What was that?"

"Some mighty strong wind," Mace answered. He then looked at Joel, "That was an explosive tip. You didn't check what shot you had?"

"Hey, I only ever did this once," he said as he looked at his bracelet on his hoof, "How do you even know which one is the normal shot I can't tell." The symbols were confusing and they weren't in any decipherable language he knew.

"See that arrow, it point to what shot you have loaded," He twisted the bracelet to wear the arrow pointed at what looked like a sideways T. "That is the normal shot." He turned and fired an arrow at another tree that stuck in the same way. "Now just split that arrow, and don't blow it up."

Joel twisted his other braclet and reloaded the normal shot, "What will you be doing."

"Looking for lunch for us to eat," he said as he turned to leave. "I will have to search further no thanks to that explosion you set off. You just stay here and do your thing." and with that he left Joel alone to practice.

Joel turned back to the new unexploded tree with the arrow protruding from it. "Ok yea I will just Robin Hood this bitch and it will be all good, no problem," he said to himself, and tried to Robin Hood he did but failed.

He he tried to aim but the weird sights gave him double vision. He closed an eye to focus better, and flicked his ear back. The arrow went just to the left of the tree. He closed his other eye and fired the other crossbow and it missed to the right.

He did this a few more times before he realized he was closing his right eye and firing the left crossbow, and vise versa. "Man I am just steller," he said talking again to himself. "Just close the right eye." He fired the opposite crossbow again, "Damn." and fired the left while looking with his right, "Damn!" he reloaded both shots and made the same mistake again. "Holly B-b-brug," he sputtered trying to actually say bitch or fuck but got a weird combination of the two. "I suck," he stated. "Left eye open, and fire left crossbow." He double checked to make sure he was aiming down the correct sights and fired. The arrow embedded itself just below the target arrow.

He did this a few more times and hit the tree but never splitting the target arrow. "Well I would definitely hit a target bigger than a fly." he looked at his shot and saw that some were only about half a foot away. "Well i'm doing good but this is boring," he muttered to himself once again. He knew that the others were just over in the other direction and couldn't see him. The sense of isolation and the repetitive aim, shoot, reload bored him to no end.

Spicing things up he decided to hide behind a tree out of sight from the target arrow he had been trying to hit, and then suddenly jumped out did a roll and fired a shot at it trying to hit it. It missed the tree all together, "What you looking at me," he said to the tree. "Well I don't have time for you," he turned away from it and looked back saying, "Aw is that a gun you got pointing at me? Well i'm just gonna HA," he suddenly jumped around, and fired his other shot hitting the tree about a foot from the target arrow. "Yea shaken not stirred please," he said feeling way too over accomplished.

Then from directly behind him he heard someone say casually, "What are you doing?"

He jumped back as he felt his heart jump out of his chest and saw that it was Kara hovering just above the ground lightly flapping her wings. He collected himself as fast as he could wiping the stupid look from his face and said, "Where did you come from? You almost gave me a heart attack."

She landed and said, "I'm on watch duty, I see everything from above." She started to slowly circle around Joel. "You know I really wish you could take your job seriously. Your lucky you even got to come with us."

Joel was tracking her with his head and said, "Hey I'm just happy to be here, but I can't help but feel you don't want me here. I should say that much is obvious."

Suddenly she unfolded her right wing and held the bladed edge to Joel's neck, "a week is a really long time and anything could happen. I won't put up with your foolishness. You wouldn't want to get on my bad side right now."

Joel said slowly as to not get us cut and said, "I'll be sure to keep my distance." Shouldn't be hard especially if she can fly.

"In the mean time try not to get any of us killed," she lowered her wing taking the bladed feathers from his neck, turned and began to walk off.

Joel smirked, "Trust me, I know what I'm doing Kara."

"Your first shot says otherwise," and she took of into the air and left Joel alone again to practice. This time although he didn't mess around.

Igneous was sitting down concentrating as Kara and Mace were gone. He wasn't alone because Hilliph was sitting just across from him. A dark hase had started to form between them that took the shape of a big rectangle. As it shape became more define the center of it briefly solidified and then it altogether vanished. Igneous let out a frustrated sigh as his effort to summon his shield had failed. "Just one more time," he said to himself.

Hilliph who was quietly observing across from him said, "It looks like you need some help," Igneous didn't reply but kept on trying to concentrate. "Your father had said you had always struggled with your magic."

Igneous opened his eyes again and said, "I'm sure he did," a bit angrily.

"I've spent some time with him and it looked as though neither of you are on good terms."

"We had our problems and a few ruins. None of which ended very pleasantly. I would rather not talk about it."

"I could help you with your dark magic Igneous." Hilliph said offering some assistance.

Igneous said, "How so. You can't summon a shield for me."

He responded saying, "That's true, I can't summon a shield that has been bound to you, infact the hardest part of summoning anything is in itself summoning it to begin with." He stood up. "The easy part is keeping it going." He glanced into his little thought bubble and said, "about one tenth the energy I think."

"So how do I summon it."

"You're not going to summon anything, instead i'm going to give you a flame to keep burning."

Igneous scoffed and said, "I don't do alchemy Hilliph. It's something I refuse."

Hilliph replied, "I'm not going to give you alchemy fire," his horn glowed a deathly black and a purely black fire combusted from nothing. "I'm going to give you black fire." It floated down from his horn with its black flames flickering and licking the air.

Igneous stood up on all fours and closely observed the black fire, "I didn't know you could summon fire."

"Black fire," he corrected, "black fire is different from normal fire in that it does not need a fuel source to burn and is much less hot. It can't burn anything organic but instead erodes materials like armor and swords." He floated the flame close to Igneous were as he didn't feel much heat. "However," he continued, "It's one of the hardest things to summon using your dark magic, but becomes much easier to keep going once you got it. I'm going to hand this flame over to you and you will keep it burning throughout the day concentrating, focusing, and by the end of the week summoning a shield may be just a bit easier."

"All day?" he repeated.

"All day long."

Igneous nodded his head and said, "if that's all it takes I will do it."

"Now concentrate on the flame," Hilliph said. Igneous closed his eyes and focused. "I will cut my connection to the flame and then you will be the only one who can breathe life into its very existence." he paused for a second giving Igneous some time. "Do you have it?"

"I do," he answered. Hilliph stopped concentrating on keeping the black flame from burning out and let Igneous take it from him. For a moment it flickered and looked as if it were about to go out, but then it stabilised and kept on burning. He opened his eyes and saw that it was still burning. "I got it."

"Now just keep it like that for the rest of the day."

Joel had shot the rest of his arrows and collected all thirty of them in a small pile around the target tree, but left his two closest shots that were about less than half an inch away from the target arrow. He had thought about what Kara had said earlier. A whole week and it's only been one afternoon. It would be one o'clock real soon and they would have to keep walking.

Mace hadn't come back to get Joel so he just walked over the small hill where he saw Igneous levitating a black fire and Mace Hilliph and Kara had been eating some apples. "Mace when did you get back?"

"A while ago, thought I should leave you to practice." he took another bite of an apple. "I was about to go hunting for animals when I found a nice apple tree nearby."

Annoyed Joel said, "Can I have something to eat?"

"yea just bring all the arrows back so Igneous can reload them."

"I'm concentrating," he said.

"Ok then Hilliph will."

"Don't you wanna see how close I got," asked Joel.

"No it's alright," he said taking another bite. "I knew you wouldn't be able to split it."

Soon after Joel got to eat and Hilliph reloaded his shots, and they started off again trotting along as they walked through the forest with Igneouses black flame hovering just to the side of him.

Occasionally it would flicker and look as if it were about to go out but Igneous would stop and fucose till it returned to its original size. After the sun had gone down leaving nothing but the stars out in the night skies, did they stop and set up.

"Alright," Mace said as the rest of the group found a nice place to sit, "Hilliph will get a fire started and who will take the first watch."

Igneous said, "I will take the first watch." His black fire was still burning although it was hard to see in the dark.

"After you kept that flame going all day you should rest," Kara said stretching her wings from flying most of the day.

"I'll be fine," he said.

"No, it's alright Igneous." Mace said. I'll take the first watch Joel's got second and you can take the last."

"Don't worry about me I will be alright."

"You won't get better unless you rest," Hilliph said. "Let your flame die and get some sleep. You can continue in the morning till night."

Igneous wanted to argue but he couldn't help but agree. "Fine."

"I dont…" Joel was about to complain when Kara gave him a threatening look, "don't mind second watch. I haven't slept outside since I was a kid so this will be… great."

"Ok we're good then," Mace said. Hilliph later started a fire with wood he gathered and every one including Igneous fell asleep on the soft green grass underneath all the stars while Mace silently kept watch. It had only been a day but they would still have six more till they made it to the Condoon forest.

Joel took second watch at what might have been twelve o'clock at night. Mace had told him to keep an eye out for monster, bandit ponies or just anything unfavorable. As much as he would had liked to sleep, the cool night air and bright night sky was actually very comforting. As he took watch against a tree he began to look at the night sky and couldn't help but notice that there were no constellations that he recognised. At least none from back on earth. No big or little dipper, no orion's belt not the north star. Even the Pegasus constellation funny enough. There was a moon but it was about the whitest thing that could ever be and looked just a bit bigger.

Things were much different here and he thought he could have just been on a completely different planet maybe even galaxy at that. But if it was then why were the main inhabitants a species of animal that could be found on Earth. Not only that but even the trees and all of the wild life he saw could be found on Earth. This is what kept him thinking during most of his watch. His attention was dragged away when he heard a twig snap.

He was about to go check it out when Hilliph appeared almost out of know were saying, "You doing all right?"

Joel jumped at his sudden appearance and said, "you guys need to stop sneaking up on me like that."

He said, "I will take the third watch. You can go rest now Joel." he walked passed him to were Joel was just sitting.

"I don't think my shift is over yet," Joel respectfully protested.

He sat down and said, "I don't need much sleep to last the day, I'll be fine. I've been keeping the fire going so it should be warm."

"Well thanks then," Joel turned but then remembered the twig snapping and said, "There was a sound out in the night. There could be something."

Hilliph simply said, "Oh it's probably nothing. Could've just been some very strong wing."

"What do you mean?" Joel asked, "How could wind have done that?"

Hilliph then answer saying, "Joel I know that you have not been a Falconer long. Infact this may be your second day, but as a Falconer you got to be on your guard at all times, because anything can happen, and now that we have the Gekies Getuies trailing us it makes our situation even more dangerous. But when we say it was strong wind it's a polite way of saying don't worry about it," His horn slightly glowed as he slightly levitated one of his swords out of its sheath displaying the blade in front of Joel, and he continued saying, "Because whatever it is I'll take care of it." He slid it the sword back into its sheath.

"You're right," he said. "This is my second day and I don't even know what I'm doing. I don't even know why i'm here."

"No pony ever gets to were there at without a few coincidences. Life is unexpected and in fact it would be unusual if nothing out of the ordinary ever happened." Joel was enamored by what he had to say. This entire thing had been the works of one huge coincidence, or was it even one? He didn't know for sure. He never believed in destiny because if it was destiny then it has a very wierd delivery system from one planet to the next. "Whatever got you here i'm sure it was for a good reason. A purpose you might say."

"I don't even know what mine is."

Hilliph laughed a little, "some never do, but we all still have one. Right now you're needed here. Now sit and listen," Hilliph said in a quiet voice. "I'm sure our visitor will make another sound."

Joel nodded and quietly sat back down. He saw that Hilliph was using his ears to listen and tune in to whatever might be making noise. There would be a lot to sift through because there was crickets, rustling leaves caused by wind and a number of other soft noises that blended in, but a snapping twig wasn't a soft ambient sound. So it would probably be much easier than expected.

Joel listened in also trying to pinpoint its location. For a few quiet minutes Joel hadn't moved until Hilliph whispered to Joel saying, "did you hear that?"

"No," he answered.

Hilliph silently opened up his bag that hung over his back and levitated a wooden bottle, uncorked it and poured a liquidy red substance onto the ground. Joel watched as it got soaked up into the ground. Hilliph said, "You know Joel, a Falconer is always in peril." The ground where the liquid was poured onto it started to morph into what looked like a long skinny snake with no head. After it formed, it then slithered away into the bushes and out of sight. "But if you come prepared and stick together," he looked over a patch of bushes that the snake was heading for and finished saying, "then you will never have to bid this world farewell." There then was a rustling and then a panicked muffled scream. Hilliph then stood up and said, "Looks like we caught our spy. Let's go pick him up."

Joel quickly followed after him and asked, "What did you do? How did you catch like that?"

Hilliph kept walking and simply said, "There is an alchemy technique I have been studying." They walked over to a bush where they found a stallion with all four hooves tied by the long snake like piece of dirt. There was also dirt covering his mouth, and Joel guessed that it splitted off from the peace of the headless dirt snake.

The stallion had a helmet cap that went from the very back of his head to the front of his snout. It was black and dark green, and gave him two horns just between his ears. He was breathing heavily through his snout, and anger was in his eyes for having been caught. "Who is this," Joel asked.

"He is a Gekies Getuies spy. He could be after the book which is the only lead there is on the Hexers forgot fortress." Hilliphs horn glowed and the stallion's legs were the dirt had gathered got lifted over his head and into the air. He took the spy over to where the others were sleeping and dropped him on his side just near the fire. All three of them woke up almost immediately to see disturbed them, and Hillph said, "Looks like we have a spy every one."

Kara opened her eyes, slowly got up while asking, "Spy? I spy for who?"

"A spy for the Gekies helmet cap is how they distinguish themselves," he answered.

Hilliph let the dirt fall from the stallion's mouth. He coughed a little and said, "I won't talk."

"We've been there befor," Mace said as he pushed his chest button letting his crossbows spring up beside him just in case they were needed.

Igneous lifted himself up and levitated one of his swords out of its sheath and spun it around in the air a couple of times and said, "I will not tolerate an incursion by some lucrative cult or whatever you consider yourselves." He held the tip of his sword just against the side of his neck pointing down ready to plunge itself into his flesh if Igneous had to, and he asked, "How many more of you are there? Tell me or I will spill your blood and you will die were you lie now."

Struggling with the dirt that was wrapped around his hoofs he said, "There are no more, I was chosen to go alone."

"And how many are coming," Igneous said as he slowly circled him. When the stallion didn't answer Igneous let the sword slip down and back giving the spy a deep flesh wound on the back of his neck.

"Whoa Igneous," Joel took a few steps forward and was about to intervene but Igneous took out another sword and pointed it at him levitating at neck height. "Hey!" Shouted in surprise and anger.

Hilliph said to him, "Stay back Joel." Mace nodded at Joel to take Hilliphs advice. When Igneous saw that he had backed down he flipped the sword back into its sheath with great speed and proficiency.

The spy resisted the strong urge to scream but you could tell just by looking at him that he was in pain, not only from the blood but the look on his face. Igneous returned the sword back to its previous spot above the side of his neck and said, "Unless you're willing to die for what ever believe you bound yourself to, then I suggest you talk."

The spy still laying on the ground unable to move because of the dirt said, "Then do it. My purpose has been fulfilled, and I'm no longer needed to rome the Carridian lands."

"I'll have it your way," he rested the blade just against his neck and said, "You will rome in hell." The spy closed his eyes as he prepared for the worst.

Joel saw that he was going to cut his neck and said, "Stop! You're just going to kill him?"

Kara answered saying, "We have to. He is a threat."

"But this isn't right. This is cold blooded."

"And what kind of world do you think we live in Joel." Kara said. "You think it's just an endless dream where every ponies is happy and there's no care whatsoever. If so then you're mistaken. He may have killed innocents."

"He does not look like a bandit." It was a weak argument but it was all he had. He couldn't just see some guy get killed off like this.

"Do you even know who the Gekies Getuies are." Hilliph asked, "They work in the shadows making deals, bribing, blackmailing, and whatever else to achieve whatever goal they set. They will kill if they have to." He paused for a moment then said, "and now our mission could be in jeopardy. They know we have the book containing vital information on the location of the Hexer fortress and the most powerful light magic in Carridian. Imagine what they will do, what they will be capable of if they get that magic. We can't let it happen."

Joel knew that they were right that this single quest could mean their world, but he couldn't just watch someone die. He was never able to, "I'm not going to watch you guys just kill him."

"We have to Joel," Igneous said barely even making eye contact. "i'm sorry for pointing my sword at you but I won't let you compromise this mission."

"I understand." he answered. "If you're going to kill then him I won't watch," He turned around giving the condemned prisoner one last look before he walked into the woods with his head down. "I'm sorry," he said to himself. "There are just I can't do."

A voice from behind, Maces voice said, "do what?"

Joel looked back surprised and said solemnly, "Nothing Mace. Just talking to myself."

Mace walked up and sat down beside him and said, "I know we only met you a few days ago and that you barely even know us." Joel didn't answer instead looked the other way. "I know adjusting can be hard but its what us Falconers must do."

"I'm not a Falconer, I might as well just go back alone."

"If you do that you will get lost, not to mention the Gekie G's that you will run into, or even monsters. Basicly it's too dangerous to go alone." Joel smiled a little. Mace was just a bit of light enjoyment. Mace continued saying, "When all is said and done and your life is over, wouldn't it be great to have no regrets. To have done everything you wanted and fulfilled every promise you made."

"That sounds like a nice ending."

"It is," he reassured, "and if you come with us that's one less regret you will have to carry with you."

"Still I can't just watch someone die and I can't take there life." He said weakly. "there was nothing I could do." he said as he began inadvertently remember his past, "Seeing someone you love slowly die right in front of you while you are incapable of doing anything is the worst thing I ever had to go through."

"I bet it is but it's what makes you. They way you value others lives even though they may seem irredeemable isn't a weakness, and although it couldn't help tonight I'm sure that later in your life it will mean the difference."

"Did I kill that guy on the mountain?"Joel asked.

"No, Igneous did. He may seem like a hot head but there is more to him than you know. What he does is for the good of us. He may not show it but he does care deeply for his team. We got six days and i'm sure you will get to know him more and begin to understand." Mace looked back, and said. "It's done. Now come on your part of this team."

Joel slowly stood up and when he turned around there was no body but the ground where it was looked a lot more lose. Hilliph had used Alchemy to bury him after Igneous killed him. He didn't know weather to think that was a good thing to give him a burial but then again it could have been used to hide the body.

They began to move because they didn't want the Gekies Getuies to catch them. They walked till the sun came up and even until the sun went down. They didn't stop during the afternoon and they all kept silent for the entire day. When night did come as tired as Joel was he took the first watch, and as he looked up at the clear night sky and to the stars he had become a stranger to, he thought of how much he would rather be back on earth, and even though Hilliph has said he had a purpose, Joel still didn't know what it was. He didn't on earth and doesn't now.

 **Intermission**

The name for the GG's was actually a google translation I did. I forgot what the english words were supposed to mean but I know that they hold a meaning that is now meaningless to the plot because of some changes I made. So now that whole mojo if vapid.

Oh and I also got a weird thing going with character names, aside from the main four, and I honestly don't know why I do that. I guess it's just a little unique. First time I did it was when I named a pickaxe in minecraft Mehnick because I thought it was a cool, odd name. I guess I like the trend and you will see more characters with the oddish names. Heres another one: Vehlhelick. It has no meaning.

 **Part 2**

The next few days blended together one after the other. Joel had moved on from that incident, and the rest did so in kind. Although they didn't stop much during the afternoons because of the Gekies Gurtious trialing them, Mace had come up with a different way of giving Joel some target practice. Mace would shoot a tree that they would eventually pass and Joel would have to hit that same tree without missing. Since Igneous was busy keeping his black flame alive Hilliph would then pick them up and reload there shots as they kept on walking.

"Looks like you've gotten really good at this," Mace said as he fired at a tree off in the distance.

Joel fired at a the same tree and hit it no problem, "It's not the same as moving targets."

"That is true,"

As they kept walking with Hilliph just behind them with Igneous, Kara suddenly landed just in front of them and said, "Were near the Condoon forest."

"How far out are we?" asked Mace.

"Only a few miles," She fell into step just beside Joel and Mace.

"So what is the Condoon forest like." Asked Joel, "No one ever gave me the full picture or even said much to begin with."

From behind Igneous said, "It's like this wooded area we have been walking in all week. Except all the trees are half way buried in the sand."

"Igneous here doesn't like sand getting in between his skin and armor." Mace said.

"Loath it." He confirmed.

"Stop acting like such a foal Igneous," Kara chirped. "it's just sand."

After they walked a mile they arrived at a cliff face that seemed to go on for miles in either direction, and at the very bottom there was a vast land of trees that poked up from an ocean of sand for as far as the eye could see. "So this is the infamous Condoon Forest?" Joel said.

"Yes." Hilliph answers. "No pony knows how trees in a desert could occur naturally so some have speculated it's the Magic of the now extinct Hexers that give these trees life in such a foreboding land."

Joel carefully looked over the edge and saw that it must have been at least an eighty foot drop. "So how exactly do we get down there?" Joel asked.

"Easy," Kara said as she spread her wings. "Fly." She took off and dove down the cliff face and pulled up just as it looked as if she were about to hit the ground.

"I think he meant us earthbound ponies Kara," Igneous muttered to himself.

Mace turned back toward the forest they had just come out of and said, "Alright Joel. I'm going to teach you the use of another type of arrow." He pushed his chest button and rotated his bracelets reloaded a shot and said, "String shots." He fired at the nearest tree and an arrow with an almost invisible wire attached to it flew out and buried itself within the trunk. "Hicrome wire is the strongest there is. It can support a hefty load in almost any condition." He turned himself slightly sideways so that the tree was facing his right side and he twisted the chest button to were it made a clicking sound.

"So what did you just do?" Joel said as loaded one string shot.

"I set my crossbows," he answered as he backed himself to edge of the cliff. "Now there in a fixed position and won't move while I look around. Great for climbing down a cliff."

Hilliph stood next to Mace as he attached the other crossbows wire to his own armor. Igneous walked up to Joel who had just set his crossbows with the arrow in the tree and said, "You're with me on this one."

Joel was concerned that the arrow wouldn't be able to hold Igneous and all his armor and four swords all together. "Is this going to hold? It doesn't seem as strong as the credit you give it."

Igneous took the wire from the other crossbow and attacked it to the back of his own armor. "its strong enuff. We did this back on that mountain."

Just befor Mace went over the edge of the cliff with Hilliph hanging below them, he said to Joel, "To go down you just got to flip your ear back and it should release some wire." and then he walked over the edge and out of sight.

"Just don't get me killed and we should be fine." Igneous said as he slowly slipped over the edge.

"Fair enuff." When they got to the bottom they took the wire feeders off of their crossbows and let them hang over the edge of the cliff. Mace had said its because they can't get the arrows out from the trees and it would also serve as a landmark on the way back.

Each crossbow had two string shots hidden just below the flight grove with one wire feeders for each arrow that could disconnect and reconnect.

The walked through the strange land of sandy trees with Kara reading the boom while Hilliph levitated it for her, and everyone else following closely behind. She led them for a hours as she identified landmarks and adjusted course slightly, and as the sun had only a few hours left on earth they came to a large mountain of rocks. "She stopped which was something she hadn't done since they got to the bottom of the cliff and said, "We're just about there."

Joel looked at the mountain of rocks and said, "What is this it? Does not look like an ancient fortress."

"I don't think a couple hundred years of existence qualifies as ancient." Mace said.

"No this isn't it and yes it does count as ancient because the Hexers are extinct." she answered.

"The last Hexer existed only fifty years ago making them even less ancient," Mace replied.

Kara looking really annoyed but Hilliph interrupted saying, "let's not get into an argument over the definition of a single word. Lets first find this Fortress and then you may resume your little debate."

Kara nodded her head and said, "these rock line up with the northern mountains. If we figure out which ones then the fortress should be just at the base of the mountains it lines up with."

"Let's just do this before we run out of daylight." Igneous said. They spent the next hour climbing up it and with just thirty minutes of light left they got to the top.

"Yep." Mace said as he nodded at the view, "This is a nice view but we still don't have our answer."

Kara was looking through the book seeing if she missed anything when Joel said pointing, "is that because we're supposed to be looking at this mountain from atop that mountain over there?"

Mace took a long exhausted look and finally said, "Welp, looks like we're staying the night everypony."

Kara stormed up to Joel and said, "How long have you know that?"

Joel replied by saying, "Some time but I thought we were playing follow the leader this whole time. I didn't want to be a poor sport."

"Hey actually aren't you supposed to be the smart one Kara," Mace said with a big grin on his face.

"I've had it," she said as she took off and flew away.

As Joel watched her fly away turned to Mace and Jokingly said, "Was it something I said?"

The next day came and along with it was Kara who decided to come back after a long night of sitting on the correct mountain waiting for the sun to come up. She landed and said, "We have our heading. This way follow me."

"I don't know if we should," Mace teased, "you might get us lost."

"Yea im with Mace over here," Joel said.

Hilliph and Igneous watch in silence as Kara slowly said, "Not another word from you two," She turned around furiously with her bladed wings spread out and said, "OR I WILL RIP YOUR TONGUE OUT!" Her metal claws flipped forward digging into the rocks beneath them and crushing them to dust.

"..." Mace turned around and casually said "Joel?"

"Yes?"

"We should probably clear the area and make sure there are no unwanted guestssss..." he began to quickly make his way down the mountain.

"I agree," and Joel followed suit making sure not to make eye contact with Kara in case the slightest bit of contact set her off on him.

There was a laugh to the right of her. "There you go Kara," Igneous said with a smile.

She took a deep breath trying to unwind and said? "It's the first time I've seen you smile in a while."

"You deserve it."

"We should get to that fortress," Hilliph said as he stood up. "We gave the Gekies long enough to catch up."

"Just keep up," kara said as she flew herself down the mountains.

The group followed Kara who was flying at a far enough distance that she wouldn't be disturbed but close enough to still be seen. "It seems Kara has been on a wire lately," Mace said.

Joel looked over at him a little surprised, "So it's not just me she is annoyed with?"

"She has been acting strange since we left the village."

"I think I was lucky to just be on her good side for a moment," Igneous said.

"Perhaps it's because she was hoping too see her sister." Hilliph suggested, "She had not seen her for a year now. I can't imagine the pain of only having to wait longer."

"A year does not pass so easily, especially when you have to wait." Mace said.

"Sooner or later they start to blend together and you just start to not care much or you just forget all together," Joel said speaking from experience.

"Not Kara," Igneous said, "She'll never forget."

"What do you mean?"

Hilliph interrupted saying, "Let's just give her some space. A mare isn't particularly easy to understand."

"Well for now she has got all the space she needs," Joel said as they walked on.

As another set of hours passed away they had finally arrived at the base of the northern mountains. Kara flew down and landed near the group and said, "I have seen the crack in the earth from above and now know where it is."

She led them on the ground for a few more minutes before they saw the ravine where the Hexer Fortress was supposed to be. It wasn't very deep and looked easy to climb down because what looked like some severely weathered stairs led straight to the bottom. "So is it down there?" Asked Joel.

"That's what the book says," she answers. They climbed down the stairs to the bottom of the ravine and stood amidst a massive opened doorway seemed to lead straight into the Fortress. As Hilliph levitated the book for Kara she said, "Now it says that there are two entrances. One is called the thieves entrance but the other is just referred to as the entrance."

"So what happens at the thieves entrance?" Igneous asked.

As she looked through the book a little more she said, "Traps mostly. It says it's survivable but very unlikely."

"I don't know about you guys," Joel said, "But I would rather take the 'entrance.'"

"Wait," Kara said, "We don't know if that is the normal entrance."

Igneous said, "It doesn't particularly look like the back door Kara."

"I agree, plus I don't see any other way in so this might actually be it." Mace said.

"We don't have much time," Hilliph said, "The Gekies could be bearing down on us as we speak."

"Looks like we're all in favor then."

"I don't like this," Kara said as they all walked through the massive doorway and into the room with walls of stone and ceilings of even more stone that loomed over them. In the corners of this single room there were stone pillars going all the way up. Other than that there were no doors or any other entrance.

"This does not look like much of a fortress Kara," Joel said as he looked around.

As Kara flew around the massive room she said, "I don't get it. This should be the fortress."

Igneous was observing the ground as it did what floors normally did, (Nothing) but he noticed that there were strange lines and he asked, "Hey Kara does this floor look like anything from above?"

She flew up to the ceiling and when she looked down she saw that the markings seemed to make a fire like patterns all across the floor. "It looks like a flame from up here."

"A flame it may look like but a flame it is not," said Hilliph, "This pattern you see is the Hexers seal that they would bear whenever they fought monsters. They said it was like a white fire that spread across there faces. From the information we have this white fire had no properties. It was never seen being used as a weapon so some speculate it is a side effect of being a Hexer."

"Probably just made them look twenty percent cooler," Joel added. "As if fighting monsters wasn't cool enough."

Mace was over standing at the center and when he looked down he noticed that there was a dome shaped object sticking out of the floor, "Do you know what this is?" he stepped on it and the stone tablet got pushed into the floor.

There was a very loud grinding noise and they all observed a huge stone table drop on the inside of the entrance blocking their only escape. "What did you do Mace!?" Igneous yelled over the thundering door that just closed.

"This is the thieves entrance isn't it?" he asked as they all stood in the center anticipating what might happen next.

"Dammit Joel," Igneous barked.

"How is this my fault Mace triggered this trap."

"It was your idea," he answered.

"Oh yea."

The floor just beneath them dropped a few inches on a slant throwing dust into the air clouding their vision. "I hate you all." Kara said slowly shaking her head as they would all be inevitably doomed.

"It's ok," Mace said patting her on the back, "we know." and the floor all together dropped down into a dark pit.


	3. Act 3 Chapters 9-11

Real quickly I got into the whole listening to music while you read think and I got a few pieces you could listen to during some points in the story that could spice up the action. I don't rely on the music to make what's happening cooler but its just a fun concept.

You'll get a thing that looks like this and you just gotta type it into youtube search because reasons.

Music: (type this how it appears to get the right version)

Its very simple and optional anyways so you don't have to if you don't want to.

 **Chapter 3**

It was quiet and peaceful down here. The room was a long hall that was lightened by yellow rocks in the ceiling that glowed with no end. This place had never been disturbed never had a sound in fifty years till now, when five Falconers slid out of wide crack in the wall and crashed in a heap against in the center of the long hallway. "To be fair," Joel said, "Mace pushed the button."

"Why would it just be in the middle of the room?" Mace said, "That seems like they want people to try to steal their magic."

Hilliph got up on his hoofs and said, "Kara said that the thieves passage is laden with traps. If any pony can get through this they must be deserving of it then."

Igneous struggled to his feet and said, "Too bad were Thieves now."

"Were saving Carridian," Kara said, "not leading it to destruction."

Hilliph took a look down the hall. Not to far from where they were there seemed to be an opening into a much bigger room. "Did you read enough of that book to know what our trials will be."

"Hard." She answered. "It said that they were for the best. Although it shouldn't be long there very dangerous."

"Thats some stellar writing." Joel said. "Just who wrote it? No infact just who came down here, did a whole bunch of trials and lived to write about it. You think he would give a walk through at least."

"A Hexer wrote it, and I am the only one in this group who can read it. It's not exactly easy Joel."

Igneous pushed passed them both and said, "Stop arguing," as he walked down the hall he levitated his shield off his back and unsheathed a sword and pointed it forward resting it atop the shield. "Let's just get finish the job before the Gekies get here."

"I wouldn't be the first to walk down a long hall buried underneath an ancient temple that has been long since abandoned by mystical ponies Igneous," Joel said as Igneous walk further down the hall alone.

"And just why do you say…" he was cut off when an Axe from the ceiling swing down just in front of Igneous head almost cutting him. He jumped back and withdrew his weapons.

"Because," Joel said as he walked up next to Igneous, "It's such a cliche." He armed his crossbows and fired one normal arrow down the length of the hall. It came to life as spikes darts and sawblades protruded from the wall and fell back in again. "Yep," he said nodding, "Apparently they have sensors." Igneous looked dumbfounded with his mouth wide open in aw. "Mace!" Joel called back to the three who were standing further back.

"Aye, what."

"You're the swiftest of us. Maybe you can make it through and find a way to deactivate these traps."

Mace took a look down the hall and said, "I got a good look. It's got a nice pattern, and we can cheat it." He ran forward and jumped passed the first axe that almost hit Igneous fired an arrow forward baiting the spikes and sawblades out before he had even reached them. As they retreated back into the wall he easily ran past ducked under the darts and was on the other end.

Hilliph asked, "Do you see a lever that will neutralize these traps?"

"I wonder if they have trap doors." Joel said as they waited.

"Got it!" Mace said from down. "This room is really big." he said. There was a loud crack in that came from within the walls as something shifted within them it went from one trap to the next as clicking sounds reverberated from them. But it didn't stop were the first trap began instead the shifting sound kept going down until it reached the very back.

"I have a bad feeling about this." Hilliph said.

"You just said it." Joel said. There was a loud boom and then the sound of rushing water coming from far down the hall.

"I don't like this," Igneous said as he began to backed away.

Music: (The Emperor's Tomb OST Laboratory)

As all four of stood there they saw huge amounts of water rushing their way ready to flush them out of the hallway they were in. "Run!" Kara shouted.

They didn't wait a second longer. On a dime turned and ran as fast as they could. Mace was shouting for them to hurry as they ran down the long hallway. Just as they had reached the threshold they dove out to the sides as the water exploded outwards. Kara had taken off and flown upwards and dug her claws into the wall resting herself.

Joel looked at the massive cylinder shaped room and saw that there was no other way but up. There was one huge pillar surrounded by many smaller ones snaking its way around it. "Turn it off Mace," Igneous shouted over the roaring water as it had already begun to rise.

He put all his weight on the lever trying to pull it back again, "I can't," he answered .

"We need to go up," Hilliph shouted. They all gathered near the lowest platform which was only big enough to only allow one of them to standing on it. As the water raised faster Hilliph jumped onto it, then jumped to the next, and the next followed by Igneous then Mace as they each jumped from one platform to the next slightly higher platform.

"I'll see if I can shut it down." She flew upwards ahead of the others.

"Don't fall or you will drown," Igneous said, "our equipment is too heavy it will drag us to the bottom." The kept jumping from one to the next as fast as they could.

"Thanks for the exposition," Joel shouted as he followed behind. The water wasn't rising fast but then there was another loud boom and from all around the room water started to pour out of the ceilings like a waterfall letting it spill to the waters below. "Keep moving." Joel shouted, They were staying ahead of the rising water, and even as they had a good start it wouldn't be long before it caught up.

Kara had flown to the top and landed on top of the massive cylinder that stood in the middle of the massive room. There was a stone bridge that led to another hallway but it was covered by an iron gate, and so she couldn't do anything other than wait.

They were about halfway up when Joel started to hear a sound coming from within the massive stone structure. It sounded as if water was filling up on the inside much faster than on the outside. He then noticed that there were holes in the central pillar that would spray pressurized water at them knocking them off their platforms. "Guys watch out for the water."

Hilliph was just about to jump to the next platform when it got sprayed by water at high velocity that would have easily sent him falling to the waters below. "Igneous use your shield." he yelled as he summoned a black shield protecting his right side.

Igneous took his shield and had it protect Mace instead of himself. Joel noticed that steam shot out just before the water came giving ample warning. He shouted, "watch for the steam guys." The water was now in full gear really kicking it now as it rose at an unreasonable rate.

Kara saw as the gate began to open on its own, and hoping that on the other side that there would be some way to stop the water, she flew right on in as fast as she could.

Igneous saw steam quickly spray out and he moved his shield to cover himself just as water shot out producing a deafening clang against it. They were almost to the top and the water level was getting closer and closer. As Joel was waiting for Mace to jump to the next platform he saw steam quickly shoot out of the hole just next to him. He had no choice but to jump back one to avoid getting blown off.

Igneous, Hilliph and Mace all heaved themselves up onto the final ledge and when Hilliph didn't see Joel he shouted over the roaring thunder, "Where is he?"

Mace looking back answered, "He was just behind me."

After he recovered and jumped to the next, and as he did he could feel the water nipping at his hoofs with each jump. The others have already made it to the top but he was just a four more platforms down. Every time he jumped the water had gotten higher making the next one even harder. As he was on the last platform the water had gotten chest high and he would have missed the last jump to the central pillar if Hilliph had summoned a hooked spear and grabbing Joel by the armor on his back and heaving him up with the strength of his magic. "Thank you Hilliph," he said through gasp.

Kara had flown down the tunnel to a small room that had one lever in the middle. She landed just in front of it and pulled it hopping the water level would stop rising. There was a grinding noise and she turned to see that the entrance to the room was beginning to be closed off by a large vertical stone door. "No, no, NO!" she yelled. She tried to push the lever back but it did nothing. Just as the stone door was about to close, a shield, Igneouses shield stopped it from shutting them out and Mace and Igneous slid right on under.

Hilliph and Joel ran passed the bridge as fast as they could down the long hallway. They had fallen behind a little and the rushing water was beginning to fill the tunnel. Joel saw that Mace and Igneous were at the very end using his shield to keep the stone door from closing and trapping them in the hallway and drowning.

"Hurry!" Yelled Igneous as his shield began to morph and bend to the weight of the stone door.

Joel was pounding the ground as he tried to stay ahead of the water. It was already swallowing up most of their legs and Joel almost lost his balance as he trudged through, but just as the shield was about to give out they dove right through the thin gap between the door and the ground just before the shield snapped and gave way to the weight of the door.

Every pony stayed silent for a moment as they could hear the water on the other side of the stone door build up. That was a close call for all involved and they were lucky to have not suffered any casualties.

As everyone caught their breath, Igneous picked up what remained of his shield. It had been snapped in half and was now useless. He threw it to the side. Kara saw him and said, "Don't worry Igneous. The Hexers have an amory i'm sure you can find another shield in."

"Not one that I made." He looked at the jagged crack where the shield had broken and threw it against the wall.

"Igneous." Kara snapped.

He stood at the entrance to the next long hallway that served as the only way out and said, "We are getting our macguffin, finishing the mission and getting out of here. I won't spend all night underground."

 **Intermission**

There were slight changes in the chapter and that's about it. I didn't know if I was going to do the music thing but it's just a lot of fun in my opinion and when you get the right music it's even better.

There shouldn't be any more from this Act but in the next there is also one from the same OST track.

 **Part 2**

An arrow flew straight down the hallway but nothing happened. "This hallway looks clear," Mace said as he looked down it. They could hear the faint sounds of even more rushing water.

"Still does not mean there isn't something waiting. It could be a different kind of trap," Igneous said.

"Why don't I just fly down it then," Kara said from behind. "If an arrow didn't trigger a trap then I shouldn't if I just don't touch anything."

"No," Igneous said shaking his head. "If we're going to get across were all going together. Were not making the same mistake."

Hilliph walked up to the entrance of the long hallway and said, "Let's just see if we can find these 'traps'." He levitated one of his long swords out and bashed the wall with the hilt a few times till a rock fell from it. "This should do," he said as he threw it using his magic. It arced down the hallway till it landed somewhere in the middle.

For a moment they waited but nothing happened, "Welp," Joel said, "looks like this one is clear after all."

He took a few steps forward, "Joel don't…" Igneous was about to stop him but then the floor just in under Joel disappeared and he fell into darkness. "NO!" He shouted as he was helpless to do anything.

Acting quickly Kara dove down into the pit after Joel. She flew under his falling body and opened up her wings taking the weight of both of them. They slowed down considerably but still crashed to the floor at a high speed in a heep. "Dammit Joel," Kara said as she tried to crawl out from under him.

"This doesn't normally happen." he said. He jumped off and as he took a few steps away he felt something hard break just beneath his hoofs with a loud snap. "What was that?" he said.

From above Mace shouted, "Guys? Are you alive?" He was peering over the edge trying to see through the darkness.

"Sadly," she answers back. She looked around the dark pit they had fallen into and didn't see any way up for Joel. She looked over to Joel and said, "wait here and don't do anything stupid please." She began to fly up but as she did the trap door suddenly closed trapping them down in the darkness together.

"Kara!" Igneous shouted as he began to bash the floor with the hilts of his swords.

"Stand back Igneous," Mace said as he loaded an explosive arrow ready to shoot the ground.

Hilliph stopped him and said, "Don't, you may cause them to be harmed by the explosion alone."

Igneous looked up and said, "What do you think we should do? We can't leave a Falconer behind."

Hilliph's horn glowed and he levitated a wooden flask out of his bag and said, "Let me take care of this." The cork flew off and he spilled a liquid on the ground and as it sat there the floor beneath it began to erode away.

After a minute there was a metal on rock sound and they saw a claw protrude from the ground, "Guys?" Kara said looking through the small hole.

"Kara," Igneous said as he ran to where the hole in the ground was, "Are you and Joel alright?"

"Yes we're fine. Can you not get the door open?" she asked.

Igneous looked back to see Mace pouncing on the ground with his hoofs roughly were Joel stepped trying and open up the trap floor, "Yea I think it's not going to open," Igneous answered.

Kara scratched at the hole again hoping that she could somehow make it big enuff for her self to fit through, "Damn this isn't going to work." she said. She called down to Joel and asked, "Is there a way out of here?"

"I don't know it's really really dark." he said as he ran his hoofs across the wall trying to find a doorway or some way out.

Igneous withdrew a sword and hit one of the glowing crystals on the roof causing a decent sized chunks to break from it. "Try this," he said as he dropped it down to him.

Now that the chamber was lit Kara and Joel could clearly see where they were. It was a vastly empty stone room with nothing except a few cobwebs and a bone skeleton of some other pony who happened to fall into the same trap. Joel picked it up with his mouth and looked around with it near one of the walls he just went over was a break in the wall that was just big enuff for them to maybe through, "I think I found a way out." He poked his head through and saw that it lead to another room much different looking. It had what looked like prison cells with iron bars and chains. "Yep we got our way out."

"We can't split up," Igneous said.

"Right now we don't have much of a choice Igneous," she said. "Just take the book with you. The next room isn't a trap, I already read about it."

"Just watch your step."

"I'll be fine," she said before she flew down to were Joel was leaving Hilliph, Mace and Igneous behind.

Mace said, "I wouldn't worry Igneous. Karra can handle herself."

Igneous looked back down the hall to the next room and said, "I'm worried that your little trainee might get her killed."

He chuckled and said, "That boy needs some work. I'll see to it he is back in shape by the time this missions done."

Hilliph walked ahead of them and said, "This 'mission' just might take longer than you expect. I wouldn't start making plans just yet Mace." They walked to the end of the of the hallway and to the opening of there next trail. As they looked they saw that there nothing but a server with a pool far below where water was draining down into a vortex. "I'm assuming this is where the water from the last room is going," Hilliph commented.

There was a ledge at the far end of the room but there was no way to reach it. No platforms nothing. "How are we supposed to get over there?" Mace asked.

"Can't you just use a string shot Mace?" Igneous replied.

He shook his head and said, "There's nothing for it to bury itself into Igneous. Everything's rock." He kicked a rock down with his hoof and watched it fall into the spinning vortex below. No doubt if they fell they would be lost forever.

Hilliph's horn glowed and a two black tower shields that were the same in shape but different in design. "This is going to be dangerous." he said.

"What's the plan?" Mace asked.

Kara had crawled through the crack Joel had discovered recently. As she crawled out they found themselves on the inside of a cell room. Joel spat the rock on the ground and said, "that taste bad. How are we supposed to get out of this?" He asked as he walked up to the cell door. He looked at the metal work and at the bolts that held the framework in place.

She flew up to the corner and started using the her claws to scratch at the rivets. "This isn't going to work." After a fruitless effort she sat herself down next to Joel and began to think.

A minute passed by and Joel sprang up saying, "I have an idea." He pressed his chest button with his hoof and his crossbows sprang up. He switched his shot to an explosive arrow and reloaded his shot. "This might be a little dangerous," He put his hoof over the lever and pushed down very hard followed by two quick pushes and the arrow popped out of the flight grove onto the ground. He did this a second time and then he took them both and shoved them between the metal door frame and the wall it was attached to.

"You're going to blow us up?" she asked as she watch him work.

"Nope." he responded as he switched both crossbows to a string shot. "I'm going to cause a controlled explosion." He popped the string shots out of their flight groves and attached the hooks to the shafts of the explosive arrows. He flicked his ears back giving the rope some slack and he began to back himself out through the hole in the wall. "Your might wanna go first," he said to Kara.

"Exactly how are you going to make them explode," she asked as she squeezed herself through to the next room.

"When I pull on the string shots they will snap the tips of the explosive arrows off causing the explosion. Want me to explain how the door is supposed to fall off."

"Let's just find out way out of here."

He crawled through and sighed, "Just cover your ears." He then raised his ears and Jerked his body sideways pulling on the arrows. There was a deafening boom along with a tremor that shook both Joel and Kara. After Joel's vision straitened and his hearing came back he said, "I cannot believe I shot one of these near Igneouses face." He said as he slowly stumbled back to his hoofs. "I had those things in my mouth." He looked at the wall that separated them from the explosion and he saw that there was a huge blast mark that cracked the entire wall.

After Kara pulled herself up she looked at the wall and said, "I think only one was needed."

"For once I agree with you." They crawled back through the crack in the wall and found that not only did the doors get blasted off but also the cell in front of them and the two next to them as well. Joel walked out of the cell and looked down both ways of the hall they were in, "Do you know which way leads out?"

"I don't," she answered, "I wonder how the others are doing."

Igneous called over the edge, "Are you alright Hilliph?" He looked down to see that he was hanging down near the waters vortex but he was still alright.

"I'm fine!" he shouted. "Just pull me back up."

Igneous looked back to Mace who planted his hoofs down as he held Hilliph by one of his string shot arrows. "Pull him up."

Mace started to back up and he asked, "What was that? It nearly got Hilliph killed just then."

"I'm sure Joel set off that explosion. He is the only other one here other than you who could have."

"I'm sure he had a good reason," he replied.

After Mace finally pulled Hilliph back over the ledge Hilliph said, "That explosion broke my concentration." He summoned the same two tower shields and place them over the open air again. "Maybe this time we won't have any disturbances." He stepped onto the first shield and it wavered a bit over the open air.

"Do you wanna take a minute Hilliph?" Mace asked, "You can take the time to catch your breath."

He laughed and said, "I may be old but i'm not a feeble old stallion."

"Alright doc, you're the expert." Mace gave him a little slack so that he could make the next step. Hilliph then rotated the shield around to the front of him so that he could take another step. His eyes were closed as he tried to drown out all distractions so that he could make it across. He repeated the process over and over till he finally made it across and to the other end. He let his shields disappear and he turned to face the others. "are you coming?"

Igneous hooked himself up to Mace making sure that he would not come unfastened. "This is going to hurt. Isn't it?"

Mace twisted his chest button to were it looked the crossbows in its current place and said, "It depends on how hard you hit the wall Igneous."

"I hate doing this with you."

"Personally I think it never gets old." He inched himself closer to the edge and peered down over what they were about to swing over. "Just remember," he began, "there is nothing to fear but fear its-" he was cut off when the very edge of the ledge he was standing on collapsed beneath causing him to fall prematurely. The slack caught up to Igneous and he got yanked over the edge head first along with Mace and together they slammed into the wall on the opposite side. Mace took quite the hit to the head and body and pretty much all over.

"Damit Mace!" Igneous shouted. Apparently the wall gave Igneous a beating as well despite the armor he wore. "I said to watch your step!"

Mace planted his hooves against the wall trying to regain his composure. "I could not have know that Igneous.

"Are you alright down there?" Hilliph said from above.

"As much as we're going to be," Igneous answered. He didn't like to just hang there doing nothing but the way his armor harnessed him almost prevented him from being useful in the slightest. All he could do was hang there as Hilliph and Mace did all the work.

Kara and Joel had found their way out of what must have been the prison cells. The hall they were in opened up into a wider room were in the middle there was a statue made of stone that had a pony, an Earth pony who was heavily armored standing boldly with what looked like chains wrapped around the entirety of its body. It didn't seem as if he minded but as if they were meant to be there. "Who is this?" Joel asked as he slowly walked up to it. "Was he an infamous criminal or something?"

Kara flew up to the statues head which by comparison was much bigger to Karas in scale. "I've read stories about him in books," she said as she put her hoof on the snout of the statue. "He is Ashur the gate keeper of the Hexer fortress. He guarded all of the Hexers magic, books, weapons and everything."

Joel walked around the side and asked, "Why is he in chains?"

"There his weapons. He was one of the only ones who could wield a chained weapon."

"I thought you would need to be a Unicorn," Joel said as he walked around to the back of it.

"Not when you're a Hexer Joel," she answered.

Joel was wondering why there would be a single room with nothing but a statue in the middle of what must have been there dungen. Looked at the ground and saw that there were scratch marks going backwards. "I think this gatekeeper is keeping something hidden."

"What do you mean?" she asked.

Joel ran around to the front of it and said, "Look for something that seems out of place. Normally it would be something like a switch or lever." He looked the statue up and down to see if anything wasn't symmetrical with its counterpart.

"Is it this?" Kara asked as she straightened one of the cuffs that were attached to the chain. There was a clicking noise and the rock statue began to slowly move backwards revealing a hidden stairway.

Joel looked down and said, "Just like I said. I knew there was something."

Kara landed at the side of Joel and asked, "How did you know that."

"Um... Telhish Menishin (Television/TV)," he answered, "He had a ton of stories to tell." He walked down the flight of stairs making sure to kick the glowing rock down with him illuminating the passageway. When they reached the bottom there was a door with a little plaque on it with words that Joel couldn't read. "What does this say Kara?" She looked at it for a few moments taking her time to decipher the words and symbols, but then she appeared to freeze. Joel noticed this and asked "Are you alright? What does it say?"

She turned to him and said, "I think we just found the magic of Noriphmy."

The room they were now in was almost bare and about as big as the one just up the stairs, but instead of the statue of Ashur there was three pedestals opposite side of the room. The middle one was taller than the two on either side of it, and the right one was the only one holding an object that was round and completely black that it looked as if it could never reflect light off of it. "Is that it?" Joel asked as he walked up to it fascinated by its look.

"Yes," Kara answered. "But where are the others?"

"Others? How many should there be?" He touched it with his hoof.

"Three," Kara turned and saw what he was about to unknowingly do and and shouted, "Don't Joel!"

"What?" he said but instantly the black ball ejected a blade from within it that cut Joel's front leg causing a superficial injury that still drew blood. He jumped back bleeding from his leg, and the blade retracted itself back into the black orb.

"Joel you insipid fool. How could you?" she shouted as Joel retreated away from the black sphere that had just attacked him.

"What i do? 'It' started it," he said as his leg slowly bleed. It wasn't a serious injury and would no doubt heal.

"Do you not have the slightest clue how Hexer magic works?" she shouted in annoyance.

"Honestly I don't even know how most of this world works." the black orb slowly rose from its pedestal and floated over to were Joel was. "Hey, whoa wait what is it doing now." he said as he backed himself into a corner trying to stay away from what just attacked him a few seconds ago. It got closer and nearer to his face but he couldn't move unless he wanted to run into it, "Kara help me here."

"Dammit Joel. Just why. Why Joel."

"Kara this thing is going to kill me." he said as he tried to kick it away.

She walked up to Joel and knocked the black orb away with her bladed wings and held her claws to Joel's face and said, "It's not going to kill you Joel. It's bound to you now. You have bounded it dammit. Do you understand what you did?" She turned away and started to storm up back up the stairs.

Joel watched her in confusion and as he did the orb came back and harmlessly bounced off his face. He swatted it away and ran after Kara picking up the glowing rock on his way out, "Kara wait. What do you mean it's bound to me?" he said through his teeth with the rock in his mouth. As he ran up the stairs the orb followed closely behind. It was like having an imprinted duckling. He spat the rock out and said, "Stop. What do you mean?" he said when he reached the top.

She turned and said, "You seriously don't get it, do you?"

"I don't even know who Noriphmy is, what a Hexer is or even who Aminus is." the orb again bounced off the back of its head as it caught up to him and Joel simply ignored it.

She looked at him with angered eyes and said, "where are you from? Who are you?"

How do you answer a question like? "I… I just, I'm just not from here Kara. I can't explain it. Please can you just help me? What is this thing?" It was now hovering next to his face just floating there.

Kara thought for a moment then said, "That 'thing' is the stolen magic of Noriphmy." She didn't look at him when she said that, "He was the stallion who saved Carridian from the Majins and Aminus the black dragon."

"What exactly is stolen magic?"

"Its Magic in a physical form. Although much weaker and less powerful it's still a useful tool." She took a breath and and looked up to the ceiling with tears in her eyes, "I was going to take that magic Joel. I was going to bind it to me." She shook her head and said, "I studied magic most my life. Most said I was crazy because I was a pegasus and that it was a pointless fruitless endeavor. My sister was about the only one who supported me. She sent me books every now and again that she would find out on her journeys. Technically she was breaking the law because she should have been sending them to the capital, but Kohlagin Sirvidian allowed it"

"But you said if you're a Hexer it doesn't matter. Any type of pony could use magic."

"You're right Joel. It doesn't matter but I'm not a Hexer. Stolen magic can be used by any pony as long as it is bound to you by blood. The very thing you did just then." She turned and began to walk down the hallway.

Joel ran after her and when he caught up he said, "why don't you just take it then? I don't need it Kara. I don't want it."

She let out a weak laugh, "The only way I could take it from you was if I killed you first."

"That doesn't seem like something you wouldn't do," he joked. "I've known you for a week now. Believe me."

"I wouldn't kill you Joel. Not even for the most powerful dark magic in Carridian," she obviously meant the very thing Joel now had following him. "If I met you on the mountain and you had this magic I would, believe me. But you're apart of team Vendetta, and a Falconer never harms their own."

"I'm sorry Kara, I didn't mean to screw up. If it weren't for me we wouldn't be down here."

She looked at him and said, "If it weren't for you we would not have found Noriphmy's dark magic."

The thought that Joel now had dark magic kinda worried him, "so um this magic. Will it corrupt me or something?"

"You truly are mentally inept Joel," she said. "Magic is a tool. Something the Hexers used constantly. Dark magic was only used for self defence. Light magic influences the physical form causing them to be capable of doing things impossible if it weren't for it in the first place."

"What about Alchemy? I saw Hilliph use some to catch that spy."

"Hilliph wasn't using pure alchemy. He was blood binding the elements so he could have control over them. Alchemy is control over elements without the need to blood bind. With pure Alchemy you can change landscapes and move mountains." The kept walking down the hall and they passed the cells they had blown up, "it's exactly what Aminus would have done."

"Who is Aminus?"

"He was a dragon with black scales, no mouth but he still spoke with a thunderous voice. He had entrancing eyes and was believed to see the future."

"That's what they all say befor there defeated," Joel said as they rounded the corner.

"He certainly didn't see Noriphmy," she took a deep breath. "I just wish I could have been alive when he fought Aminus. They said the white flames that shown on his face were the brightest and most pure thing anypony had ever seen, the most absolutely breathtaking sight ever. Just something so magistrum about it, and some just thought he was a god."

"I would believe it."

"Manny did. But he wasn't a god. This magic proves that he died." Joel thought that was kind of depressing. You accomplish so much in life and the time comes it just ends, "So after he defeated Aminus and killed all the majins…"

"Margins?"

"Majins," she corrected, "Majins were essentially monsters except they could wield magic to devastating effects. This is where Hexers got there magic, by killing Majins."

"Wasn't Aminus a Margin then? He was a monster."

"Aminus was a monster but he was not a Majin. Nobody exactly knows what a Majin is except that unlike monsters they have no blood." They found a flight of stairs that looked as if it led out of where they were.

"Kara," Joel said. "I'm really sorry for binding this black magic. I didn't know it was so important to you."

"It's not your fault. My intentions were not exactly pure in heart. I just wanted it just so I could say that I have it."

"But I don't even know how to use it."

She smiled and said, "I'll teach you. I know more about Hexers and there magic than anypony. Even Hilliph."

"Let's just get out of here first," They ran up the stairs and up to the door and opened it. They were in a balcony in a massive room that looked as if a war had taken place there. There were cracks in the walls burn marks chains and a whole a wall that looked as if it had been blasted through.

There was an explosion on the far end and Joel saw Igneous and Mace jump out of a smoke cloud were as Igneous shouted at Mace, "Deploy yourself." Doing as he was told Mace pushed his chest button and his crossbows sprang up beside him. There was the sound of a huge door opening beyond the smoke screen and Igneous drew two of his four swords.


	4. Act 4 Chapters 12-14

**Chapter 4**

"So what are we going to do with this magic Hilliph?" Mace asked as they ascended up the stairs.

Hilliph eyed the crystals white fluorescent glow once more before he levitated it into his bag. "That remains to be seen Mace. For now we should just keep it safe till we get back."

Igneous was following behind in the back when he asked, "Won't we run into the Gekies on our way back?"

"We just might Igneous," he answered. "We just might."

"Aw I'm sure it's nothing we can't handle Igneous." Mace said. They reached the top and pushed open a door and opened it up to find that they were in a massive room that looked as if it had been torn apart from the inside. There was one pillar that looked to be supporting the entire room but it was badly cracked and looked to give away at any moment, "What happened here?" Mace said as he looked over the place.

"Looks like a battle took place here," Igneous answers.

"Who would fight a Hexer and do this much damage?" Mace said as he walked out into the center of the carnage. Stone had been ripped from the walls the floors were cracked and there was a massive gaping tunnel in the side of the wall. "It looks like they came from there."

Hilliph walked to one end of the room where there was chaines going from the bottom of the floor to the top. Mace realized that the wall looked exactly like the one at the thieves entrance with its markings and patterns. At the base of one of the chains there was a lever just sitting there. Hilliph said, "We should probably open this door."

Igneous said, "Why would we do that now? We need to find Joel and Kara."

"Just so we have our way out." he answered.

"We know our way out," Mace said. "Opening that door might put us in danger of being found by the Gekies."

Hilliph put his hoof over the top of the lever and said, "I does not matter if we find them now or later. They will still be there."

Igneous eyed Hilliph suspiciously, "It does matter. We will have greater numbers." Hilliph didn't answer him and Igneous drew one of his four swords and pointed it at him. "Step away from the lever Hilliph."

He took his hoof off of the lever and said, "Pointing your sword at another Falconer again Igneous. You seem to make it a habit."

"Igneous what are you doing?" Mace asked.

"I will raise my sword to whoever endangers my team and my mission. Now this is your last warning. Step away from the lever." Hilliph didn't move. "Deploy yourself Mace."

Mace said, "Igneous stop. What are you doing."

Hilliph slowly put his hoof back on the lever and said, "You should really listen to your superiors Mace." using his magic he unsheathed his long sword and whacked Igneous sword away and levitating a pellet out of his bag he threw it to the ground causing smoke to envelop them all. He pulled on the lever and the gate began to raise.

Igneous and Mace jumped back out of the smoke, "Deploy yourself." Igneous ordered and Mace pushed his chest button letting the crossbows spring up at his side. Igneous drew another sword and levitated them both at his side ready for an attack, "Hilliph explain yourself!" he shouted.

They heard the gate stop as it opened all the way up. Through the smoke Hilliph emerged but he wasn't alone. On both sides of him there were dozens of Gekies with their black masks and fixed swords marching in. Some were unicorns and they had their own swords. They stood in formation near the exit with Hilliph in the front standing just a few steps away from Igneous and Mace. Hilliph put on his own mask by levitating it onto his face. He withdrew his second long sword and said, "My name is Hilliph Verex direct descendent of the first invader, conqueror and king, Kordan Verex."

Igneous stayed his ground while Mace backed up a few so that he could get the range advantage on any attack. Mace saw that even with their talents they still wouldn't be able to easily win, "It would be nice if you could summon a shield now Igneous."

"Why Hilliph. Why are you doing this?"

"I don't have time for questions Igneous," He said walking through the small crowd of Gekie warriors. "I should tell you not to follow me. I will be gone and you will never have to see me again."

"Trader Hilliph. I would rather see you dead then not," Igneous took a few steps forward and in doing so the whole first row of warriors deployed there fixed blades outward and took one step forward ready for attack. Igneous refused to be intimidated and said, "Look at me. I want to see the eyes of the trader of team Coehin."

He stopped where he stood and said, "I was never apart of team Coehin." He turned and revealing guilt ridden face and said, "I killed team Coehin." He raised his sword toward Igneous, "Besides Igneous, you don't know the things they've done. Out there," he said pointing his sword past him. "Beyond the lands that you know and to the ones I'm all too familiar with. You don't understand Igneous." He levitated one sword long outwards toward Igneous while resting the other over his back. He straightened himself up and said, "The kingdom is yours now Igneous. It's a shame you'll never inherit it."

Igneous knew this fighting style. Hilliph would use the outstretched sword for quick attacks and defence and the one laid across his back for heavy attacks when there was an opening. Much like his own style but slower and more precise. "I will fight you not as an avenger but instead for the protection of Noriphmy the last nation of the great valley."

"You're outmatched Igneous," Mace said.

"Stay back Mace," Igneous said as he position one sword upright in front of his face and his other above his head pointed toward Hilliph.

Hilliph took a few steps forward and said, "Killing the son of Kohlagin Sirvidian isn't and wasn't my intention, however I will see to it that it becomes history."

"Igneous is a Prince?" Joel said as he focused on Hilliph.

"There's no time. Take the shot Joel." Kara said. They were in the top balcony where the door opened up to. They hadden't been spotted yet and Joel had his sights dead on Hilliph. "What are you waiting for? Take the shot Joel." All he had to do was flick his ear back and he could kill him before things got real bad, but he couldn't. "What are you doing?" She said surprised.

"Kara just wait a minute," he said trying to buy himself some time. He knew it was the right thing to do and could save Igneous and Mace.

"Were out of time," She said just as she pounced on Joels head pinning him to the stone railing. She had been there that night and seen the state he was in when they caught the spy. She didn't wanna risk the fact that he might not take the shot because if they engaged Igneous would not stand a chance.

"Kara?" Joel said as he struggled beneath her.

"I'm doing this for him," She did her best to line the shot up from her perspective and then flicked Joel's ear back with her hoof causing him to fire an explosive arrow unwillingly.

Miraculously the explosive arrow flew straight for Hilliph dead on. At the last moment Hilliph raised his longsword and deflected the arrow across the broadside of it causing it to fly into the ceiling above them. A large chunk of it fell and landed just between Hilliph and Igneous cusing the floor beneath them to collapse and swallow them both up, but before Hilliph completely disappeared he shouted for his troops to attack.

Instantly six pegasuses took off with claws attached to their hoofs and flew for Kara and Joel. Kara lept off the balcony and flew straight for them as Mace from below shot two out of the sky leaving only four left for Kara to deal with. She was about to slash the first one but he dipped just below her and went for Joel. He fired but the arrow went just under the pegasus. Joel ducked under his attack and the pegasus landed just in front of him, and lunged for another attack.

Joel was about to be killed when suddenly the stolen magic appeared out of know were. It formed blocked the blade against itself then a blade protruded out from the center of it cutting the pegasus's hoof. Startled he flew off the balcony in retreat just to be shot out of the sky by Mace. Joel looked at the black orb that had been bound to him and it vanished into thin air before his eyes.

The front row consisting of five earth ponies and four unicorns spread across all of them took up a defensive position. The unicorns each having one shield and one sword took their shield and laid it in front of them sideways protecting themselves and half of the earth pony's on either side of them. The other half would be protected by the other. The earth ponies deployed there fixed swords letting them poke out through the gap between the swords as the unicorns held their swords above the shield. This created a strong defence and one that Mace would not be able to penetrate. Not even Igneous could. The slowly marched toward him and he fired an explosive arrow. It hit the pack of them but it didn't break their defence. They kept advancing and if he didn't think of something fast he would seen be slaughtered by them. "Nine and ten." he said as he thought.

Kara had three to fight. She flew straight for one but it dipped just below her. The next came at her from the side and was about to plunge his claws into her side when she countered it by doing an aileron roll causing her bladed wings to cut the face of the pegasus sending him falling to the ground.

He crashed near Mace holding his head with his hoof and when he saw Mace he charged him with rage of pain. Mace rolled out of the way of his claws and fired a normal arrow into his head. The pegasus fell over dead. Mace then turned his attention to the advancing blockade and fired an explosive arrow at the ceiling just above them causing it to collapse. The dispersed themselves trying not to get crushed beneath the falling debris, however a unicorn and earth pony got caught under it and crushed. "nine and nine." he said to himself.

As the group were now open he switched to his normal shots and fired one at an earth pony hitting him in the side piercing his lungs and heart killing me. One earth pony charged him from behind and swung his body to the right trying to slash him. Mace ducked under it and fired a an arrow which buried itself in the neck of his attacker.

Kara had one pegasus directly behind her. She opened up her wings bringing herself to a hard stop flipping over backwards and digging her claws into the back of the pegasus. She then kicked him off her claws and into a group of earth ponies trying to regroup there attack. The unicorn got hit by the body causing him to drop his shield and Mace fired an explosive arrow in the center of the group. There was one unicorn left and two earth ponies still alive. Kara had one more Pegasus to deal with. She looked to her right to see him flying straight for her. She made the mistake of just hovering there and now she was wide open, and just when she was about to get stabbed by the claws Joel fired an arrow that struck the pegasus in the left wing causing him to fall to the ground. He then turned and shot the back of the leg of a unicorn that was charging Mace shield raised.

The unicorn then tumbled to the ground in a cry of pain and Mace finished the job with an arrow to the chest. Mace had shot the last two earth ponies who were unprotected. And now all he had was the unicorn with a sword and shield. He saw Kara dive for him and quickly he shouted, "Don't Kara."

She stopped stunned and confused and said, "What are you doing Mace?"

"I'm doing what my had taught me years before," Using his mouth he picked up the dropped sword of another Unicorn he had killed and held it sideways. Through clenched teeth he said, "This is for him."

The unicorn before him said, "an unconventional duel this is." He slammed his sword on the ground and said, "I Jeckaluke expect this fight and will slay you in honor of my fallen comrades." He raised his tower shield up to Mace and let the tip of his sword drag along the ground as both he and Mace slowly circled each other.

Jeckaluke drew up his sword and swung at Mace. Mace then jumped back letting causing him to overswing. Quickly Mace dove to the side and swung his sword toward Jeckaluke's body but he quickly moved his shield to block it followed up by a downward thrust by his sword. Mace tried to block it with his sword but it got driven into the ground. Jeckaluke then thrusted his shield forward into Maces face. The force of the impact caused him to fall backward. He quickly got to his hoofs just in time to duck under another attack. Jeckaluke let out a laugh, "though I may have minutes left to live, I am going savoir this while I still breath."

Mace switched his blade from his right side to his left. His silence said it all. Jeckaluke then took another slash at Mace but he jumped back again and jumped forward with a downward swing which he blocked easily with his shield. Jekaluke then attack by swinging his sword to the left but Mace jumped out of his reach again but Jekalukes sword didn't stop it kept orbiting around his body and as his horn glowed brighter it went faster. He started to walk toward Mace who was already drained. This attack was the stance breaker. If he tried to block he would be disarmed. (Metaphorically. What you want me to say diss-hoved?)

"Mace you can't win this," Kara shouted.

"Don't," he yelled.

Jeckaluke lowered laughed and said, "Say your prayers Falconer." He then unexpectedly lunged forward with his sword spinning around him at high speed. Mace couldn't do anything in time so he tilted his head upward blocking the attack with his sword. The impact was so hard it sent the sword flying across the room and caused Mace to flip around. Jeckaluke laughed raised his sword and was about to plunge it down into Maces chest when all of a sudden he let out a horrifying scream dropping his sword and shield.

Mace looked up to see a sword protruding out the bottom of his chest. Then suddenly his body all together got lifted into the air, and mace saw that behind him stood Kohlagin Sirvidian. He held Jeckaluke in the air for a moment as blood dripped over his face and body. He then flung him off to the side as he gasping in pain.

He turned his attention to Mace and said, "You thought you could fight a fully armed Unicorn Mace? Your foolishness almost got you killed." He sheathed his sword away.

Mace crawled to his knees weakened by the fight and said, "It was for my father."

"Your father is not dead Mace," he then turned to Kara who had just landed and said, "and neither is your sister."

Kara asked, "But then why did Hilliph say he killed you?"

"Hilliph Verex went by the name Hilliph Luminick while he was apart of our team. We didn't suspect it but it turned out he was the one working with the Gekies. He attacked us when we least expected it stealing the book and leaving your father and your sister critically injured. I did my best to heal them both but they needed real help. The couldn't come with me although I was also injured." He raised his head to show a scar going down the length of his chin. "He knew that you were the only other pony who could read the Hexer's language so he then came to your team."

"He used us," Kara said to herself.

"What was he planning?" Joel asked as he descended the stairs from the balcony.

Kohlagin instantly withdrew a sword pointing it at him and Joel froze afraid for his life. After seeing what he did to Jeckaluke he would rather not be on the wrong team.

"Who are you?" he asked.

"He is Joel," Kara said, "He became apart of our team a week and a half ago."

"Has he had training?" he asked.

Mace finally stood up and said, "He has been under my supervision and training this past week."

"So you're inexperienced? Why did you bring him on this mission?" he demanded.

"It was Igneous who decided to bring him," Mace answers.

Kohlagin finally sheathed his sword which was much relief to Joel and said, "And just where is he."

Immediately Kara said, "Oh no." and flew for the whole in the ground.

They were about to run after her when they heard a faint murmur. Joel turned to see that it came from Luminick. Mace noticed and walked over to him and this time he heard him more clearly. Luminick said one word, "Home."

"What?" Mace said.

Luminick bleeding out had tears in his eyes and he said, "I just wanna go home. I spent years away from my family for some cause. I never wanted to come." He was sobbing now and he kept repeating, " I just wanna go home, I need to see my kids"

"Shit," Joel said, he began to slowly walk away to the point where he couldn't even hear him. Mace still stood above him and he heard him ask where he came from. Very weakly Jeckaluke raised his head and Mace lowered his to hear better. Joel saw Jeckaluke utter something to Mace then he lowered his head. His chest lowered and didn't raise again.

Mace just hearing what Jeckaluke said looked at Joel in confusion. He then ran past him and to were Kohlagin was looking down the hole Igneous and Hilliph fell into. Mace ran up next to him and said, "Kohlagin. Do you know where these guys are from?"

"What do you mean Mace." he asked.

"Jeckaluke just said that he was from Istudious." Kohlagin didn't reply but instead looked away. Mace said, "Istudious was destroyed during the end of the Magic Era." Kohlagin didn't answer again and Mace knew he was hiding something. "What do you know about Istudious?"

For a minute Kohligan was silent but just as he was about to speak Kara flew out from the hole in the ground and said, "We need to get down there quick. Igneous is seriously hurt."

Kohlagin said, "Get my team from outside and tell Diettetcheny to prepair aid."

"You have another team?" Kara asked.

"There outside keeping guard now hurry."

Kara flew away to go get the others but Mace still hadn't gotten his answer, "Kohlagin…" he began but was cut off.

"Mace he died as soon as I stabbed him in the heart and before he could say anything more. What you heard was the wind and nothing more." He turned away and repeated, "Nothing more." Mace was about to speak when a peace of the stone roof fell away crashing to the ground. It snapped Joel out of his little shock and he ran over to Mace. Kohlagin said, "there is no time. This place is coming down."

Joel asked, "What do we need to do."

"Go get my team from outside." he ordered. Joel ran out the fortress and out of sight and Kohligan said, "Hitch me up Mace. We need to get Igneous befor this place collapses."

Mace switched to a string shot and asked, "How did you even find us? We traveled miles for days."

He took it and straped it to the back of his armor and said, "You're not the only Falconer who knows how to track Mace." Another large chunk of the roof fell and Kohlagin looked over to see that the already badly damaged pillar holding the entire place up was beginning to crack beneath the weight. "Were running out of time. now quickly get me down there." He jumped over the edge and into the abyss.

 **Intermission**

Now I will admit that it's hard to portray a good fight scene in a book without using the "and, but" words as if you were battling in pokemon but I will say that I did get better with the next next one, no spoilers, and I hope that I can do just as good during the last three… no spoilers.

I didn't expect this chapter to be so long but who cares. I read (somewhere) that a chapter should be between 5,000 - 25,000 words anyways so I guess I'm good.

Oh and you get music right off the bat to so have fun with that.

 **Part 2**

Music: (The Emperor's Tomb OST terror at 20,000 feet)

Hilliph slowly put his hoof back on the lever and said, "You should really listen to your superiors Mace." using his magic he unsheathed his long sword and whacked Igneous sword away and levitating a pellet out of his bag he threw it to the ground causing smoke to envelop them all. He pulled on the lever and the gate began to raise.

Igneous and Mace jumped back out of the smoke, "Deploy yourself." Igneous ordered and Mace pushed his chest button letting the crossbows spring up at his side. Igneous drew another sword and levitated them both at his side ready for an attack, "Hilliph explain yourself!" he shouted.

They heard the gate stop as it opened all the way up. Through the smoke Hilliph emerged but he wasn't alone. On both sides of him there were dozens of Gekies with their black masks and fixed swords marching in. Some were unicorns and they had their own swords. They stood in formation near the exit with Hilliph in the front standing just a few steps away from Igneous and Mace. Hilliph put on his own mask by levitating it onto his face. He withdrew his second long sword and said, "My name is Hilliph Verex direct descendent of the first invader, conqueror and king, Kordan Verex."

Igneous stayed his ground while Mace backed up a few so that he could get the range advantage on any attack. Mace saw that even with their talents they still wouldn't be able to easily win, "It would be nice if you could summon a shield now Igneous."

"Why Hilliph. Why are you doing this?"

"Lets just focus on the task at hand shall we." He turned toward Gekie warriors and said, "the extermination of team Vendetta."

"Trader Hilliph. You're a trader you hear me?" Igneous took a few steps forward and in doing so the whole first row of warriors deployed there fixed blades outward and took one step forward ready for attack. Igneous refused to be intimidated and said, "Look at me. I want to see the eyes of the trader of team Coehin."

He stopped where he stood and said, "I was never apart of team Coehin." He turned and revealing a villainess smile on his face and, "I killed team Coehin." He raised his sword toward Igneous, "Besides Igneous, you hated your dad. You loathed him and it's what you've wanted." He levitated one sword long outwards toward Igneous while resting the other over his back. He laughed, "The kingdom is yours now Igneous. It's a shame you'll never inherit it."

Igneous knew this fighting style. Hilliph would use the outstretched sword for quick attacks and defence and the one laid across his back for heavy attacks when there was an opening. Much like his own style but slower and more precise. "I will fight you not as an avenger but instead for the protection of Noriphmy the last nation of the great valley."

"You're outmatched Igneous," Mace said.

"Stay back Mace," Igneous said as he position one sword upright in front of his face and his other above his head pointed toward Hilliph.

Hilliph took a few steps forward and said, "It will be an honor to kill the son of Kohlagin Sirvidian."

Suddenly an explosive arrow shot at Hilliph and he deflected it just accross the board side of his long sword sending it straight up into the ceiling above. It exploded causing a large portion of it to collapse. The debris crashed just between Hilliph and Igneous breaking the floor beneath their hoofs and sending them falling below. Just as Hilliph fell he shouted for his men to attack. Igneous fell heavily onto a what appeared to be a land bridge that stretched across a fast flowing underground river that seemed to be powering some sort of water mill machine.

Igneous quickly picked himself up and saw Hilliph chasing after the white magic of Aminus that had fallen out of his bag during the fall and was now rolling toward the water. Igneous rushed after him with his swords at his sides. Just as the white orb was about to roll over the edge and into the waters far below Hilliph dove for it and just barely caught it with his mouth.

Igneous down swing both of his swords at Hilliph but he instantly rose a long swords blocking them both. Still on the ground he kicked Igneouses hoofs out from under him causing him to fall over. Hilliph then tried to stab him and Igneous just barely dodged his head out of the way. Igneous got both his swords and was about to swing at him when Hilliph pushed himself over the edge of the land bridge falling onto a sideways spinning gear. The impact knocked the white orb out of his mouth sending it rolling near the edge.

Igneous jumped down landing over the orb but Hilliph had already gotten to his feet and swung both his blades sideways at him. He kicked the orb away and ducked under the attack. He then rushed Hilliph pinning his body against his head he ran Hilliph into the pillar holding the gear in place. He then dove for the orb scooping it up with his hoof just as it fell.

"I may have underestimated you Igneous," Hilliph said as he stood up. "You're very talented in the smith arts," Igneous popped the ball into his mouth and clipped the hilts of his swords with his two sheathed swords. He drew the out and readied his two double bladed swords for combat. Something he hasn't had to do for a year. "but there is one thing you lack," Hilliph continued. From his bag a clear liquid flowed out of it. It was bound water used for elemental blood binding. "Magic!"

The water shot out landing just before Igneous and it morphed the metal into spikes that shot up from the ground at him. Igneous rolled out of the way and ran along the outside of the gear jumping off onto a bridge made of wood. He landed against the railing and as he regained his balance Hilliph landed just behind him.

Igneous blocked Hilliph two longsword downward swing with one double bladed sword and got bashed in the face by Hilliphs black shield knocking Igneous backwards and the orb out of his mouth and onto the ground. It was now sitting idly between them and Hilliph spoke saying, "You never did have a magical ability to only levitate two weapons, can't do alchemy, and you can't even summon a shield for the life of you."

Igneous regained his stance and spat out blood from the shield impact, "Shut up and fight Hilliph. I'm enjoying this too much." He raised his swords above his head ready to charge.

Hilliph raised his shield and said, "I'll have it your way." They then ran at each other swords raised and clashed right above the Light magic of Aminus.

Hilliph sung his left long sword down on Igneous but he blocked it with one blade and with the other he smashed the lower hilt of it knocking it out of Hilliphs grip, and sending it falling to the water below. Hilliph then tried to downward smash Igneous but he blocked the sword again, and using the same disarming process he sent it flying into the air landing further behind Igneous on the wooden bridge.

But just as Igneous though he had the upper 'hoof' (hur hur) Hilliph raised his shield and smashed the wooden bridge they stood on. The blanks beneath it shattered and slowly the bridge began to fall apart. Igneous dove for the light magic but it was to late because the bridge along with Hilliph and Igneous fell into the waters far below.

The entire structure had fallen and as Igneous crashed into the water, he lost his four swords during the fall. The weight of his armor dragged him down to the bottom of the rushing river. When he reached the bottom he got his foot hold on the slippery rocks and when he opened his eyes he saw that Aminuses light magic had sunken to the bottom as well.

Losing oxygen fast he picked it up with his mouth and he fought against the current to pull himself out of the river. When he broke the surface and crawled out onto dry land he spat the orb out and gasped for air. He fell on his back heaving. For a minute he sat there before rolling over onto his stomach. He could hear the sounds of a water fall and when he looked he saw that he was practically about to go over it, but off in the distance he saw a faint ray of light. He was so drained of energy that he couldn't even stand, so Igneous crawled over to the cliff face keeping the light magic near his body and saw that there was a exit to this river. They must have been in a cave, and it had to have been sunlight.

He heard the sound of laughter and turned around to see Hilliph standing there soaked in water and breathing heavily. His mask had fallen when he destroyed the bridge. Igneous couldn't even stand to face him. "So this is the Prince of Noriphmy," Hilliph said. "The Prince who ran away. Tell me, what exactly were you looking for Igneous?"

Igneous could barely muster the strength to look him straight in the eye. He rolled his head in his direction and said, "Years of coddling. Never seeing the outside world and just not knowing." he took a few heavy breaths and continued saying, "When I finally did get a glimpse I saw that life wasn't as grand as I once thought. I wasn't just going to sit idly by as the people of my nation suffered." He shook his head, "But I didn't know my father would then follow my example."

Hilliph chuckled, "well now you're going to follow his example, and fall dead before me. Never has an opponent such as yourself come so close to killing me." He levitated his long sword from off of his back he held it out to Igneous, but then it dropping to the ground in front of Hilliph. He sighed as he was drained of magic. "Remember that lesson about the black flame. If taught well you should be able to summon a shield." He picked up the hilt of the sword in his mouth and said, "let's see if that taught you anything." He began to walk forward with the blade of the sword dragging in the ground.

Igneous focused. A black mist formed in front of him and began to take the shape of a shield, but before it could solidify it vanished. Hilliph was getting closer so Igneous tried again but the same thing happened. He did it once more and it disappeared. Hilliph said, "how very disappointing Igneous." he was almost within striking distance and a few more steps would be all it takes.

The light magic of Aminus was just in front of Igneous. So in a last ditch effort he bit down on his leg and began to tear away at his own skin. The pain was immense but he tore threw. Now bleeding he waved his hoof over the orb spraying blood all over it. Hilliph froze where he was. Igneous weakly stood up.

If done right the light magic should have been bound to him. Kara had said that magic flows through the blood of the living and that magic itself binds to blood. But he couldn't feel the magic, he didn't feel the power. Hilliph then looked Igneous in the eyes and said, "Nice try." he then wiped his sword across the chest of Igneouses body and sent him falling over the cliff face and to the waterfall below.

Hilliph dropped his sword and fell to the ground. He looked down into the pool below and said, "valiant effort Igneous. But Aminus isn't dead."

 **Intermission**

I don't know how hard I've tried to make this kind of magic understandable but I have a set of rules and a lot of other stuff so that the story doesn't get overridden with, 'cuse magic,' statements although they are kinda funny in my opinion.

Basicly the three types of magic is basic and complicated at the same time.

 **Part 3**

He opened his eyes and saw nothing but blackness. It was cold and it was wet and he didn't know were he was and he couldn't think straight. Then in the middle of his vision two objects appeared and they slowly grew bigger. Igneous reached out to them as they got closer and he said, "Am I finally dead?"

Kara pushed his hoof down and said, "You're going to be if you stay in this water." Igneous didn't answer but instead just laid his head down. His armor was shattered where Hilliph had struck him in the chest and the blade cleanly cut through his flesh causing him to bleed.

Another voice, one Igneous didn't recognise, came from the figure standing next to her. She said, "He is over here."

He heard the sound of pounding hoofs and some one spoke saying, "How is he still alive? That looks like one fall."

"He sure did tried his hardest to die," Kohligan said. He sat down in the water next to Igneous. He said, "Diettetcheny help me with healing him."

The unicorn with a robe that that covered the entirety of his body except his eyes said, "We won't be able to heal that wound."

He sat down on the other side of Igneous and Kohligan said, "I know but we can stop the bleeding." His horn glowed and as he lowered it onto Igneouses chest. The bleeding stopped but the wound didn't close up. It would take time for that to happen. He said, "We need to get him out of the water."

Kara answer saying, "He can't move he is too injured."

Kohligan summoned a hooked spear and said "I will say what Igneous can and can't do." He Hooked Igneous by the notch in his broken armor and began to drag him through the dirt. If Igneous wasn't awake he was now because he screamed in agony. He pawed at the ground trying to get his footing but it was useless. Kohligan then threw him against a boulder and shouted, "What were you thinking you foolish idiot!"

He weakly got picked himself up and said, "Old man, I outrank you." He then fell to the ground holding his chest.

Dettetcheny stepped forward and said, "He lost a lot of blood Kohligan. Doing this could cause him to start bleeding again."

Kohligan turned and said, "Then we will just heal him again."

"We don't have time for this Kohligan. The fortress ceiling will collapse any minute now," Floritha said as she stood next to Kara. She, like Kara, was a Pegasus with bladed wings and claws who had flown down with her to find Igneous. The only difference was that she had front hoofs made completely out of mettel.

"If Hilliph didn't get out that way then either he is still down here or he found another way out." Kohligan replied. He turned and commanded, "Go Find them."

Floritha took of and just as Kara was about to follow Igneous said, "Don't Kara." he stood up again but this time with more stability and sure footing. "Don't listen to him. He's not leading this mission."

Kara hovered there unsure what to do exactly. Kohligan said, "I have had it with your ignorance Igneous." he unsheathed one of his swords and threw it down at Igneouses hoofs.

"Is this how we must always meet old man," he said as he used his magic to levitate it into the air and into a defencive position.

Dettetcheny laughed and said, "you're fighting an injured. This cannot be a fair fight."

"I need to teach him some respect," he answered.

Kara was unsure what to do when Igneous was so intent on fighting even in his injured state. Igneous never talked much about what or why he and his father never got along. The only time she had seen them together was the first time she met Igneous one year ago, and goodbyes weren't supposed to end in a sword fight.

Thankfully for her sake Igneous threw the sword on the ground and said, "not now. He have bigger priorities that this 'feud.'" he tried to walk but the pain of his injuries came back to him and he fell over in agony surprised that he even allowed himself to even stand to begin with.

Kara flew over to him and pleaded, "Please Igneous, just don't move."

"That will be the easiest thing I do Kara." he then closed his eyes and appeared to be sleeping although he was far from it.

Kohligan retrieved the sword Igneous had thrown to the ground and silently walked off toward the water's edge just as Floritha arrived and said, "I have not found Hilliph but there is an exit where he might have escaped."

"Right," he said, "Get the eartheniers and scout the immediate area. If you don't find Hilliph then come back because we're not going to be moving for tonight."

Dettetcheny walked up to Kara who was sitting by Igneous and said, "give this to him." Out of his bag levitated a capsule like rock, "This should dull the senses for your little smith."

Kara took it from him and said, "as if he already didn't use them."

"Pain may only be temporary but relief to some is always a blessing," his robe covered everything but his eyes and it made it hard to get a good read on him. "It may be allotted to the common pony but it is even more so for us Falconers." He levitated another from out of his bag and said, "You could probably use the ease. It's been a long day."

She eyed him and said, "I would rather not."

He laughed, "No problem, I'll just take this for myself then." he slipped it underneath the folds of his rope and Kara could hear him bit down on it.

"Should you really be softening your mind right now smitheneir?"

He looked at her and said, "I'm doing it for the nerves." He lowered a bit of the cloth around his eyes and showed Kara the skin he was hiding. After she got a good look he tucked the cloth neatly back into place and said, "don't forget we each have a story to tell Peganeir." He then walked off leaving Kara alone with Igneous. (yes you don't know what he revealed to Kara)

She bent down to Igneous whose eyes were closed and said, "Take this. You need it."

He didn't open his eyes but he said, "I don't Kara. I'll do just fine without it."

"Why Igneous?," she asked. "Why do you gotta be so stubborn? What exactly are you trying to prove to yourself let alone me."

He opened his eyes and stared off into the distance and said, "That I don't need coddling, that I can stand on my own two hoofs."

"You can't even stand your so injured." When he didn't answer she got up and said, "fine. Just keep acting like a child Igneous. It's done all the all the good in the world for you so far." She walked off leaving Igneous putting the rock in between the folds of her feathers to hold onto it. She saw Kohligan still sitting by the water's edge looking down into it and she decided to go talk to him.

Igneous sat there alone as he watched Kara go silently away. Just as he thought he was alone he heard someone from above say, "You should just be glad that you got hoofs to stand on."

He did his best to look up and he saw that Floritha was resting on a rock ledge just above him. "shouldn't you be getting the eartheniers," he said as he lowered his head back down to the ground.

She said, "They're coming but right now," she landed next to him and he saw that her two front hooves were made of metal. She finished saying, "I wanna talk about you." She sat down next to him and said, "Your growing ignorant Igneous and your team needs a leader." She held out her hoof that held another one of those rocks and said, "if you're not going to do this for yourself then do it for them." she nodded her head and Igneous looked to see that Joel, Mace and another earthenier coming down the pathway. Mace looked offset and Joel looked even worse than the night they found that spy. The other earthenier had all the standard gear.

When Mace saw the state Igneous was in he ran up to Igneous and asked, "What happened Igneous when you fell through the floor. You look worse than ever."

Floritha interrupted saying, "Right now we have bigger concerns. You two and Oxinum are to scout the outside of the cave for any signs of Hilliph. If you don't find him then you have orders to come back."

"What about Igneous?" Joel asked.

Oxinum then spoke saying, "A smith such as him will do just fine," he walked passed and as he did he eyed Igneous through the corners of his eyes not making an effort to move his head. It reminded Igneous of snake eyes. "Now come," he said as continued to walk by without looking back, "We may just be able to find him."

Mace and Joel gave Igneous one last look and then followed Oxinum. Florthia then turned back to Igneous and said, "your team needs you Igneous. You're supposed to be the pillar they fall upon for support. How can they if your cracked and broken?" she turned to follow them but as she did she tossed the rock down at Igneous side. He had lost his shield his weapons. His armor shattered and useless. What use did he have anymore especially if he was just going to sit there in pain. He took one last look at the rock and ate it.

"So... Kohligan," Kara said nervously as she walked up to him.

"Yes peganier?" he said still staring into the water as it flowed downstream from the waterfall not to far away. He must have been thinking and Kara felt terrible for having interrupted him.

"My sister," she began, "Is she alright?"

Without looking he said, "Your sister will live. By now she should be healed and as good as normal."

The way he said it made Kara feet that he wasn't telling her something. So she asked, "Will she fly?" Kohligan didn't answer but instead tilted his head away from her. "Kohligan?"

He let out a sigh and said, "there's a chance."

"What do you mean?" she asked getting more and more worried.

"I did my best Kara, but she-" he cut himself off. "I don't know Kara. I'm sorry." but she wasn't there. As she flew away out of sight of Kohligan Igneous and just anyone elts she could help but begin to cry. She landed on a rock ledge and just laid there sobbing quietly, and after a few minutes she picked herself up.

She remembered the rock that she had tucked away and she took it out and held it in her hoof. She stared at at it for a few minutes but after a long silence she put it into her mouth and bit down. She then laid back down on the stone ledge looking down at the others. Kohligan was still sitting where he was Igneous was all alone. The search party had come back and by the looks of it they didn't find Hilliph. Mace walked off in his own direction leaving Joel and Kohligans own team gathered near a fire they started with alchemy or fire paper. And she just laid there alone with nothing but the sound of the waterfall.

Joel watched as Mace walked off. While they were out he seemed agitated like something was just bothering him but he wouldn't say and Joel couldn't tell. From the side Dettetcheny said, "Need some company poor hunter?"

Joel looked over to see that Dettetcheny, Floritha and Oxinum were all sitting around a fire they somehow started. Oxinum had his head down and he appeared to be sleeping while Floritha and Dettetcheny sat there. Dettetcheny appeared to be smiling but underneath his robe Joel just couldn't tell. Only his eyes were present. "I wouldn't mind the company" he said as he walked over to the fire and took his own place.

Dettetcheny said, "Your team isn't looking its finest. I would also boldly say your not doing to hot eather Earthenier."

"What tipped you off?" he said sarcastically.

"Your introvertness…" Oxinum said his eyes now wide open but his head still laying down.

They why he just looked at you made Joel feel uneasy so he asked, "Why do you do that? That thing where you look at other but not really."

"If Oxinum looks at you it's mostly likely because he is about to kill you," Dettetcheny said.

Oxinum said while moving his head a minimal amount, "It's a habit. I've been a Falconer for quite some time and I appear to have picked up a side effect."

"It's-a kinda unnerving," he said.

"That's only bad for the enemy," Oxinum said as he closed his eyes again.

"Speaking of 'unnerving' what's gotten under your skin hunter."

Joel took a deep breath and said, "Oh I don't know," he rubbed his neck with his hoof and continued saying, "Maybe the days and nights just feel much shorter or the miles I walked or just the killing. Most likely the killing."

Dettetcheny said, "I understand. How many have you put down?"

"I-I haven't killed any pony yet. About the only thing I killed was a monster." He shaked his head, "It seems more like we have only ourselves to worry about and the monsters are just here, hanging out, having fun or something."

Floritha said, "honestly the monsters are about the biggest immediate threat we face."

"Right," Dettetcheny agreed. "Killing a monster is procedure but one mistake can end up getting teams killed and villages wiped out." He laughed a bit, "makes it all the more sad."

"What do you mean?" Joel asked.

He looked up and said, "You know what I mean Joel. Noriphmy has enuff suits to properly protect itself. We could even have an army."

"Just nopony wants to be one," Floritha finished.

Joel hadn't known this. Falconers had sounded scarce but he didn't know they had the ability to have an army. "Why not?"

"Us Falconers got a bad reputation," Dettetcheny said. "They think we're just piss poor excuse for a warrior. You know, fighting wars and defending the nation. I mean the respect us for the work we do but fighting wars is a warrior's job."

"Our job is to hunt monsters but we end up killing more of ourselves defending villages from bandits then monsters normally do on a good week," Floritha said. "And besides look at us. Were out right now hunting for maguffins and killing some cultish group."

From a far Mace said, "There not a cult."

Every pony including Kohligan looked over to Mace. Kohligan rose from where he was sitting and intimidatingly said, "excuse me Mace. What exactly did I hear you say?" his horn glowed and slowly his sword began to unsheathe. "Or could it have just been the wind?"

He stood his ground and said again, "There not a cult. There from Istudious."

Even Oxinum raised his head and looked directly at Mace after hearing what he just said. "What do you mean, 'there from Istudious?'" Oxinum said. "Istudious was destroyed after the great rising."

"It's what Jeckaluke said with his dying breath," he said.

"I gave you one order," Kohligan said as he began to march towards him with his sword pointing forward. "Your insubordination will not go unpunished." Although Mace did not deploy himself he still stood his ground.

Every pony, including kara, watched as the standoff between these two intensified with each step Kohligan took closer to Mace, but just as i seemed it was about to get out of hand (or hoof might I say. Actually No! NO! I won't do this. Joel is human so it does not matter. Why do I even care? Why am I interrupting the story just to tell you this and why I being unprofessional just by typing this? Just don't ask, keep reading and shut up. Wove you 3) Igneous jumped taking Kohligans levitating sword's hilt in his mouth and came to a skidding stop in the dirt. He threw down the long sword, turned to face Kohligan and said, "Mace is part of team Vendetta. My team. You may be a King but out here you fall under me. Your jurisdiction does not run this far. If there is a punishment to be given then I alone will execute it." For a minute Igneous and Kohligan stood there quietly and nopony else moved.

Then Kohligan moved towards Igneous. He shoulder bumped him out of the way and Igneous grimaced a little from the pain. Kohligan collected his sword back up and shifted it away and without a word he walked down the stream and out the cave exit.

A few minutes later they heard a rumbling sound and knew that the Hexer fortress had collapsed in on itself. Dettetcheny looked up and said, "But I never got to see the armory." He out of his bag he spilled out four red collared crystals and said, "I even brought all of these."

Mace walked up to join them along with Igneous who walked with a slight limp and no longer had his shattered armor. Igneous said, "It's a pity. I was looking to get a new shield."

Dettetcheny collected them back up and said, "and how were you going to do that with none of these?"

"I wasn't planning on losing everything."

"Your amor didn't seem to do its job all that good Igneous." Joel said as Igneous and Mace sat down around the fire.

"It did its job," He replied. "but hycrome tipped weapons do theirs better. But right now we need to talk. All of us." he said looking around.

"Where's Kara?" Mace asked.

"I wouldn't bother her."

Floritha stood up and said, "it would be best to leave her alone." She said in agreement.

"Right," Dettetcheny begain. "so what are we to talke about?"

Hilliph look at every pony around the fire and said, "The new mission."

 **Intermission**

I did almost no changes on this entire act since I thought that there wasn't much that needed changing. I mostly hated some of the beginning and one part in the next act and that's about it.

I might use one or two more tracks from the same OST but I haven't so far instead I used a different one coming up.

 **Part 4**

"I know that you see and I know you can see me," Hilliph said as he kneeled down by a river side. "I know I have been filled with doubt at one point or another." He took his only long sword he still had and held the blade over a scar on his chest. "But after this discovery my faith has been renewed and I shall fulfil my promise just as you asked." He stood over a small flowing river is it gradually disappeared into the sand leaving nothing but a few blades of grass and said "And this blood," He braced himself for what he was about to do, "will carry me to you." He slit his chest allowing blood to fall into the river. He took the empty flask and held it in the water letting the blood mixed water fill it up. "You see me now and soon I will see you once again." He sheathed his long sword and tapped the blood bound water against his forehead before putting it in his bag.

His horn glowed and he stopped the bleeding in his chest. He then re equip his armor across his chest. He looked up at the night sky and the moon and said, "And just as I will keep my promise you will keep yours, were as I will restore your light magic." He then turned and began to walk through the tree filled desert land intent on keeping his promise.

"Igneous?" Mace said as they sat around the fire. "Igneous?" he repeated a little louder this time. Igneous snapped out of his little trance shaking his head. "We lost you for a minute there," Mace said.

He rubbed his hoof against his for head and said, "I'm fine." He turned his attention to every pony sitting around the fire and said, "You all understand the mission now and what we're doing?" Mace and Joel both shook their heads in affirmation but Dettetcheny and his team gave no such sign. "Excuse me," Igneous said to them.

Dettetcheny and Floritha both looked at each other while Oxinum appeared to be asleep and Dettetcheny said, "Are orders were to follow Kohligans orders. As much as we would want to follow through on this it's ultimately up to him."

"What if he does not approve?" Mace asked, "what will you do then?"

"Until he's done with us and leadership is handed back to me there is nothing I can't do."

Igneous remained silent as he thought for a moment and Mace asked Igneous, "Do we have any reason to believe that he wouldn't come?"

He thought for a couple minute more and then finally said, "No. If anything he would be out for blood too. Hilliph didn't just betray us but he attacked his team too."

"When will he come back?" Joel asked.

"I fear he might not. If anything he ran after Hilliph."

"Hard life," Joel said underneath his breath. I just thought of how some people could just be so… ugh, or something. These guys were all just maniacs. Even Kara slaughtered like five other gekies without hesitation. She still had some blood on her face oddly enuff. It almost made him completely forget about that time they were in the hallway as she practically got emotional with along with a one eighty degree turn from threatening him since the first night he was dicking off during practice.

This train of thought caused him to remember the dark magic he found not too long ago and even as the others were talking he was looking around his body as if he misplaced it. Oxinum oddly enuff noticed this even though he appeared to be sleeping and asked; with his head still down, "lose something?"

At this point everyone (pony* Shut up it's painful for me) there was looking at him and he said, "I dunno. It shouldve been…" it then appeared right in front of him hovering in mid air. "Oh here it is." he said as he rested it on his hoof.

But it was only then he forgot that only Kara was the only pony who knew he had this Dark magic, that he stupidly bound to himself and now everypony else jumped up and away kinda like how cats react to cucumbers. Or really just anything in general. Oxinum deployed his crossbows and fired off two rounds and the dark magic; by itself, formed into a shield blocking them both. "Whoa Watch It!" Joel yelled. Slowly he poked his head around the side to see that they all were in some sort of defensive position. Igneous included if he still had weapons to fight with. "Excuse me," Joel said from behind the shield, "But just why exactly are you trying to KILL ME?!"

Igneous started asking questions all round, "What is this? Where did you get it? How long have you had it? What are you doing with it?"

Then Joel responded saying, "Stolen Dark magic, down in the cellars with Kara, maybe thirty minutes and really I'm not doing anything, its kinda doing it by itself." he then peered around the corner of the shield the dark magic had formed and asked, "need me to answer anything elts?"

To Joel's relief Mace said, "calm down. Joel wouldn't kill any of us."

"Yea see Igneous," Joel said. "He knows." Joel didn't want the shield to just stay up but he didn't know how to control this magic. All he knew was that Dark magic was used for defence although a sword was meant for offence. He put his front hoofs on the shield somehow hoping it would do something but instead the shield formed back into a ball and he fell forward onto the ground.

"He clearly has no idea what he is doing," Floritha said as she got off guard. Joel picked himself up and the dark magic floated and hit him in the back of the head. Anoyed he snached it out of the air with his mouth and threw it to the side were as it boomeranged back and hit him in the face. "Just look at him," she said.

He rubbed his side of the face the orb hit and he said, "Kara said that she could teach me how to, 'control' this thing. Except she doesn't look like she wants to be doing much right now."

Igneous said, "how do we know that you won't accidentally kill one of us with that?"

"Well so far it's only acted in defence for me," Joel answered. "So I think you're safe."

"Thats nice," Mace said. "But right now we have more to worry about Igneous."

"Right." he said, "If Kohligan does not come back soon we will have to assume he went after Hilliph alone." He turned towards Dettetcheny and his team and said, "if he doesn't then he forfeits the command of your team and you may take control again. The plan will continue as um uh..." he said as he lost his train of thought. "The new mission," he began after shaking his head, "will continue as, um planned."

Mace looked Igneous up and down and asked, "Are you alright Igneous? You seem a little off."

He turned away and said, "I'm fine. Right now we just need Kara."

Floritha asked, "Should I go talk to her?"

"No," Mace answered, "It would be best if I go talk to her. She trusts me more."

"Whatever you think is best," Igneous said as he walked towards the river's edge. "When you all are ready to go then we will leave." Igneous looked back to see that Mace had gone off to go talk to Kara while Dettetcheny and his team along with Joel rested back by the fire.

As he stood by the water's edge staring into it he thought of what he was doing. He didn't know what he was going to do to be an effective leader. With no weapons, no armor, no shield, poor magic and just his alchemy. Being a leader was scary because if anything happened to his team or Dettetchenys team it would fall on Igneous. Weather or not they blamed him for whatever happens he would still bear up the guilt.

Tired and exhausted he lowered his head a little and as he did something flashed in his eyes from further upstream near the waterfall. Curious as to what it was he walked into the water to find out. As he got closer he began to recognise the feeling of whatever it was and as he stood above it with the water up to his chest he used his magic levitating it out of the water and saw that it was two of his four swords.

They were still connected when Igneous last took the fall into the river. The blades looked a little chipped but that's what you get when you clash swords. As he held this in his magical grip he heard a voice say, "Those weapons are a thing of beauty." He turned to see it was Dettetcheny standing just on the river side. He may not have wanted to get in because it would get his cloak that completely covers his body soaked and wet. As Igneous began to make his way out of the water he said, "If I had the opportunity to forge my own weapon I would do a little something like that."

When Igneous finally did make it out of the water he said, "The only reason I forged the hilts to connect like this was because I couldn't and for even the life of me still can't levitate more than two objects."

Dettetcheny nodded, "So I heard, more rightly from your father that is."

"Does he talk a lot?" Igneous asked as he walked toward the spot where he left his broken armor last. If he was going to carry these weapons he still needed the sheaths that carried them.

"Not very often," he answered as he followed closely behind. "He never really talked much unless he had to." Igneous reached the pile of broken armor he left and from it he pulled the shiths for his swords. Two slots for two swords on each side with the higher slot overlapping the lower one near the middle. He strapped it on and after he did he shifted both of his swords in the top slots on either side. "I'm assuming you carried a lot of weight. Four swords armor and a shield." Igneous didn't answer because the reason he had to carry every thing was because he was terrible with dark magic, and dark magic allows you to summon weapons shields and armor. Dettetcheny then said, "You know I could teach you a few things about summoning. After all it's my specialty." His horn glowed and as it did a black sword, shield and helmet appeared.

This made sense since Dettetcheny didn't carry anything except his bag. Igneous said, "Hilliph tried doing the same. His lesson was the black flame."

Dettetcheny shook his head and said, "That black flame thing is a myth. A new method it is but it's unaffected in the summoning of phantom weapons. They tried doing the same thing with me and I was the one to find out by myself how to summon phantoms."

This was off putting for Igneous. Not only did Hilliph actually try to teach him but either way it was pointless. Weather it was by design or he too just didn't know. Igneous however couldn't decide because what threw him off was when Hilliph asked if he remembered the black flame lesson as if he actually meant to teach him. It still was unclear to him but then he asked Dettetcheny, "And just how did you learn to summon phantoms."

Dettetcheny looked around as if some other pony could be listening and then he whispered, "most don't think to practice summon the very weapon they're using." He then walked back towards the fire softly laughing to himself.

Igneous thought about this for a minute. He knew that when a bound weapon becomes summoned as a phantom the weapon itself does not go anywhere. When it's summoned it becomes unstable and using a phantom weapon along with the bound weapon itself is dangerous because the bound weapon is at a great risk of breaking and if it does then the phantom then vanishes. But of course Igneous had four swords and if he practiced with the two he had now then maybe he could learn to summoned his two lost blades and eventually his tower shield.

Unicorns have said that the closer you are to your bound weapon the easier it becomes to summon, and if he has two swords right next to him then summoning them both should be easy. It made him think how little information gets around between Falconer teams. It just makes it all the more apparent that there are just not enuff for Noriphmy.

Kara was all by herself almost sleeping when she heard something ricochet off a rock near her. She turned her head to see that there was an arrow lodge under a rock with a wire attached to it. Not too long after Mace pulled himself up onto the same ledge she was on and said, "I see your hard to get Kara."

"Why are you here," she said as he sat down next to her looking out over the view. From where he was sitting you could see the water mill and were Hilliph had morphed the metal into spikes. The waterfall and the river that ran far below it.

He said, "this is a nice spot. I can see why you picked it."

"You didn't answer my question," she said reminding him.

Mace let out a sigh and said, "I know what happened to your sister. Oxinum told me when we were coming down here." Kara didn't respawn to what he said but instead just moved herself away from him and laid her head back down staring off into the distance. "Kara we need you down there." Again she didn't answer so Mace said, "Let me tell you a story."

He sat down near her again and began to talk saying, " Many moons ago, infact around the time my dad had just become a Falconer, there was this traveler named Qudake. Now during one day he came to a village during a snowstorm. But this wasn't just an average snowstorm you or I had seen but this was a white out. You could hardly see beyond your own snout it was so bad. He intended to stay the night and wait out the storm till it calmed down, but just befor he went to rest there was a family that said they had lost their little filly out there in the blizzard.

"Now this blizzard was one of the worst they had during this time and the temperatures were well below freezing but Qudake despite the conditions, despite the odds of even finding her he still threw on his cloak and began searching." Mace looked over to Kara and from the position her ears were in he could tell she was listening. He continued, "After a few hours in the freezing cold searching he did miraculously find her beneath some trees were the branches kept the snow off her.

Unfortunately the snow storm had picked up and was even worse than before. She was cold she was freezing and if she stayed like that much longer she would die. With not many choices Qudake gave her his own cloak to keep her warm. The next day the storm had subsided and the rest of the village started to search. Eventually the found were Qudake and the little filly taking shelter underneath the tree."

"Was she alright," Kara asked not having spoken since Mace had started telling the story.

"She was fine," Mace affirmed. "The same couldn't be said for Qudake."

"What happened to him?" she asked.

"He froze to death," Mace answered. "He let himself die just to save that young filly. Now Kara," he said looking at her. "Do you think he was a good stallion?"

"He had to be," she said.

Mace smiled, shook his head and said, "That's what I thought. Qudake killed a falconer and was on the run. When my father caught up to the village he died in he got the whole story." Mace looked off into the distance within the cave. "You wanna know what my father said about Qudake?" Kara didn't answer but he continued anyway. "He said, 'Qudake was a killer. He slayed one of my team and ran from his punishment, but that night during the blizzard. He decided that he wasn't going to let that young filly die.'"

"Why are you telling me this?"

"Because if a stallion like Qudake can do something like that then imagine what we could do." Kara stayed silent for a minute then Mace said, "Today I'm going to make a few decisions. Number one," he said holding his hoof out. "I'm going to finish this mission and get back to Noriphmy see my father after one long year. And number two," he said looking at Kara. "Getting you back to see your sister after one long year." She became filled with determination and felt as if she could go on a bit longer. She needed to stay strong and if she couldn't do it for herself then she would do it for every pony elts. "Kara," he said, "You know me and I never break a promise. I'll get you home no mater what."

For some reason she felt a little strange. It was the thing he said but something clinged to her in a such a way that she felt worried almost. She didn't know what, but she decided not to think on it. They had a new mission after all and she wouldn't let her mind be tainted with worry.


	5. Act 5 Chapters 15-18

Ok uh got this one done and sadly I got to say that I need to take some time off from this because i'm getting bogged down by life right now. I just need to take care of a few things, nothing too serious or anything like that, I just really need to stay on top of a few things is all.

It's a shame too because after this chapter there was going to be three consecutive fights happening that were one chapter each. I hate to leave you on a cliffhanger but it's all I can do for now. Until then here's what you got.

 **Chapter 18**

Horrible was it not? That was some outburst out of nowhere, but as a result Mace had gotten kicked off the team. It's not like it was unavoidable because Igneous had already made up his mind before the whole encounter and there was almost nothing that could have been done afterwards.

Joel had gotten promoted to being the official tracker of team Vendetta but since he hadn't the first clue of tracking Oxinum, Molitta took up the reins instead using his tracking ability that wasn't exactly equal to Maces, but the matter was they weren't hunting one who was exactly keen on hiding his tracks. It wasn't very hard finding clue after clue and to a seasoned tracker such as Oxinum, Hilliph might as well have just painted a red line to where he was going.

With Oxinum in front with Igneous closely behind, it left only Dettetcheny and Joel in the back with Kara and Floritha doing immediate surveys of the ground and sky, making sure not flying too far away from the group just in case Hilliphs tracks happen to take a sudden turn into the mountains or deeper into the woods. Both of which were equally mysterious and far from the equilibrium they now traveled in.

Joel wasn't exactly excited that Mace had gotten booted from the team. He was probably the closest thing he had to a friend, aside from Kara who he did not quite consider a friend but more of an acquaintance. They only talked like twice anyways and the other times they did she was pissed off or annoyed with him just being there, so for now he is just happy they can along for now.

Dettetcheny had his new helmet on over his clock that waved in the wind, along with his new weapon and the armor plated thing while Joel kindly carried the round plate that was meant to be the shield. It was much lighter than he expected and that was good.

Joel could tell that Dettetcheny was bitter of the whole conflict. He didn't know quite what it was but Joel guessed that it was either that Dettetcheny had to take orders from an emotionally corrupted psychopath, or that one third of his team is bound to taking direct orders from him or that his initial mission had just been extended probably for the next few days, if not weeks. It's not exactly something Joel would be happy about either but he was the lowest rank so his opinion didn't really matter anyways.

Still though, he couldn't help but sympathise with Dettetcheny so he mustered up what ever will he had and asked, "You alright?" Wasn't exactly very articulate but what more did he need to say anyways.

Dettetcheny answered saying, "No!" and nothing more. Welp Joel got his answer so there was no need to push any further and get invested in a pointless search for whatever, so he intended to just flutter off out of his presents and forget about the stupid obvious question he just asked, when when Dettetcheny continued saying, "I'm glad you asked though. I feel as though I should say something lest I turn into Igneous himself." Looks like he already made a name for himself.

'Welp shit,' Joel though. He didn't really want to talk about Igneous behind his back probably because he was a little scared of him. Igneous practically has the ability to destroy Joel several times over with one attack and he wasn't sure if Igneous was also holding out on some light magic that would grant him the power to resurrect Joel after death only to be killed again. But what was he going to do? Joel was the lowest rank and least contributing member so what did his opinions matter for. So he sighed and meagerly said, "What would you like to say?" He prayed that this didn't get him killed some how. 'Killed by a magic, fire sword wielding Unicorn on a mission to recover dragon magic from some other holocaustic unicorn from another destroyed nation who also happens to have killed his father the day befor. RIP Joel, rest in ashes.' Sounds like a terrific grave stone.

But whatever the cost he would listen. "I feel as though Igneous is unable to properly lead us now."

"Why do you say that?" Joel asked making sure Igneouses ears were pointed forward.

"A leader with no quarrel is a leader than can make decisions and judgments without prejudice. Something he is apparently passed," he said. "If he becomes more poisoned with this… idea then it only serves to be self destructive as to what we're trying to accomplish."

Joel thought for a second about this for a minute. It was true, prejudice does leed to irrational decisions and self destructive nature and all but something about what he said didn't quite add up. Seconds later he came to his conclusion. "Isn't this some broken logic you're talking about?"

"What?"

"I mean if your saying a good leader should be one without prejudice then neither you or him fit the bill," he said. Joel thought of his next words so that he didn't make his first enemy. "You uh… obviously have some sort of feelings… towards Igneous. N-not ones that I would rather see you express, but if you were to take charge immediately then you would only be breaking apart both teams even further. One problem would lead to another and we all end up dead and or stranded, and Hilliph gets his way whatever that way may be."

He braced himself for whatever came next but to his surprise Dettetcheny gave him a slow nod, "It seems that you are right Earthenier. Such an action would indeed be counterproductive and would make matters worse." He took a deep breath, "I suppress any anger towards him and focus on the mission, after all I have served under worse and been in terrible rainstorms and frosty winters, and I won't let this little inducement be the first thing to break me." He laughed a little. "I'll be in high spirits, no need to worry."

"That's good," Joel said glad that he dodged a bullet. Well that would be an understatement since the odds of probability would state that you would most likely survive a bullet shot or five, and in any instance these guys looked as if they could take a magazine anyways, but whatever bomb defused that's all Joel cared about.

"Still," he continued. "I'll be cautious not only of him but of myself too. I'll be making preparations in case the odds go south and i'm thinking Igneous is going to need a shield since his dark magic isn't up to specs."

"Your giving him one of your plates?"

"I haven't made my decision yet Hunter," he said. "In any case I won't let his own irrationality get himself or my team killed. I have a certain honer I got to uphold."

"You're talking about Igneous behind his back are you?" Said an all too familiar voice.

Joel jumped in suprise and Dettetcheny was as equally surprised although not as spastic as his peer. Kara landed just near them and kept pace as they traveled along. "Kara you need to stop doing that."

"I won't let you diminish Igneouses reputation with your words," she said ignoring Joel's complaint. "I've know him far longer than the two of you have and I won't let you talk like this."

"He expelled Mace from team Vendetta," Dettetcheny said. "I'm sure yo-"

"Quiet," she snapped. "Unlike you, I can tell that these past events have been taking a toll on Igneous." She wore a bit of sadness on her face and she continued saying, "what a poor hunter he is. He doesn't know how to feel. His father just died and his best friend left. He is trying to stay strong for me and you." Joel and Dettetcheny exchanged glances as she kept talking. Apparently he does care although vague and hard to tell. "Igneous doesn't like to talk about himself very much, but the things he had told me was that his biggest fear was being a leader."

Dettetcheny nodded and said, "I too understand. It's not easy giving commands knowing that your team could die if you make the wrong judgment."

"Yes, it's a very heavy weight to bear," she said in affirmation. "I know you may not know but I can tell you that he is worried about Mace and if he will be safe all alone in this dangerous land. I know Kohligans death also had a very strong effect on him." She took a deep breath. Obviously she strongly sympathised with Igneous and understood him better than anypony there. She said, "He is trying his hardest. He is no different from you Dettetcheny. He saved countless lives over and over and has never asked for anything in return."

Dettetcheny nodded and said, "I understand." Kara looked relieved at that statement and Joel was just kinda there anyways. Dettetcheny then said, "It's just that, Team Maitasuna spoke so highly of him."

Kara snorted and said, "Don't get me started on team Maitasuna. I'm surprised that Adridge can even keep those two idiots on check, especially when there always drooling over Igneous."

Dettetcheny smirked a little and said, "Sounds like he has a couple of admirers. Correct me if i'm wrong, but I do recall them saying that Igneous had enjoyed working with them in the past."

"Yes we got stuck working with one another but it was strictly for the good of the mission and nothing more."

"Kara if I didn't know any better," Joel said chipping in on this rather interesting conversation. "I'd say you're a bit Jealous."

"Yes Joel," she said looking him straight in the eye. "You don't know better. I have more important thing than binding myself to some relationship. Noriphmy needs protection and I won't let myself be distracted." She let out a tired sigh and said, "I shouldn't be wasting my time down here anyways. I got a duty to uphold and you two do too." She opened up her wings and began to take flight up into the sky to resume her surveying of the land leaving Dettetcheny and Joel running next to each other.

It left Joel with a couple of thoughts and since Dettetcheny was a dude he might as well have shared them saying, "Binding yourself to some relationship? Sounds a little bleak."

"Sure it may," Dettetcheny said as he weaved around a tree. "I hold the same belief that intimacy can be… distracting. And although such an urge isn't ruled against within the ranks of a falconer, most prefer to have clear mind instead." Joel could understand a belief like that and since being a falconer didn't mean that half of lives splendid pleasures weren't 'forbidden' like other cliche'ed groups that pop up in fiction he used to read, and it made Joel all the more happy to be a falconer oddly, despite the recent events of course.

He was about to respawn when Dettetcheny looked ahead and motioned for him to slow down. He said, "It appears there has been a bit of a development." When they caught up to Igneous and Oxinum he asked what had happened or why they needed to stop.

Oxinum slightly out of breath said, "It appears I uh… lost the trail." He kicked the dirt around a little as if he was trying to find the trail underneath the fine layer of dust.

Dettetcheny asked, "You think he learned how to cover his tracks with alchemy?"

"No he couldn't have," Igneous said. "He uses blood binding for artificial alchemy so he would need a constant supply of blood and water to accomplish something like this."

Oxinum did a quick survey of his surroundings and said, "He could have back tracked but I would have found the diverging path as a result. He would have needed vertical movement or very careful precise hoof steps."

"He could not have just disappeared," Igneous exclaimed. Just then Floritha and Kara both landed near them all and Igneous asked, "Have you found anything from above by chance."

Florith nodded and said, "we have. Listen because this might sound odd, but um…"

"The forest seems to have formed a sort of pattern around this area," Kara said finishing her statement.

"A pattern?" Igneous asked.

"Yes," she confirmed. "The trees sort of seem to gravitate to this area in particular. Unnatural natural events like this tend to happen were Hexers had gathered. Some say it was because of the high concentration of magic."

"I see," Igneous said as he turned back to the tracks and where they had ended. "So were standing above what might be another Hexer fortress?"

"It depends."

Igneous withdrew one of his swords holding it in his magical grip and said, "and it should be buried right where Hilliphs tracks end?" Kara nodded and Igneous then said, "Stand back please." Oxinum, Dettetcheny, Joel and the rest all did as he commanded. He flipped his sword around bring it to a stop pointing to the ground were the tracks vanished. He then plunged the sword deep into the ground all the way to the hilt. His eyes slowly began to darken as he focused his magic and then he whispered, "Combustion." He then became enveloped in an explosion that was much larger than the others had expected but were a fair distance away to have not been harmed.

After the dust cloud had subsided and the dirt settled the group was relieved to see that Igneous had not been harmed in the explosion at all. Not even a scratch and what stood before him was a tunnel lined with stone bricks with stairs leading downwards that was big enough to house all of them easily.

He flipped his sword back into its sheath and said, "Let continue." He lead them downwards followed by Joel and Kara, and just as Dettetcheny was about to enter he sized up a bit and quietly gasped. Floritha noticed this and immediately whispered, "Dettetcheny are you ok."

With a strained voice he answered saying, "Yes, yes I'll be fine." Dettetchenys horn glowed a bit as he rummaged through his bag and after a few moments he pulled out white rock.

Oxinum asked, "Dettetcheny how many of those do you still have?"

Dettetcheny fell to his knees in weakness and panted, "Just the one." He quickly threw it into his mouth and began chewing on it. Still with a strained voice he added, "I didn't expect the mission to be prolonged like this."

"You can't go on like this Dettetcheny," Floritha said with deap concern in her voice. "When the effects wear off what are you going to do caught all the way out here?"

With strength returning to him he stood up and said, "I'll be fine Floritha. Right now we got a higher priority."

"Are you sure you will be alright?" Oxinum asked.

Dettetcheny gave him a quick glance and avoiding their looks he said, "No, but I didn't come this far to give up now. I'll see this through till the end."

Joels head poked out of the stair way and asked, "Are you guys coming were waiting for you."

"Yes yes," Dettetcheny said with much artificial vigor. "Lead the way Hunter."

Finally they followed them down the hidden stairway that was illuminated by more glowing rocks that hung above. The stairs guided them downwards for longer than either of them expected but they soon came into a wide opening big enough to contain half a city block and on the far other side was a double door many times bigger than themselves, and finally in front of it stood Hilliph waiting patiently.

Instinctively Kara and Floritha both deployed there claws and flew upwards and hung on the wall just above them awaiting commands. Oxinum deployed his crossbows letting them spring up at this side and Joel did the same.

Dettetcheny was already ready with his scorpion wepon hanging over his back ready to be whipped into action and he took the scorpion tail shield and held it out in front of him. Every pony expected the equivalent from Igneous except he hardly seemed fazed by the presence of Hilliph, instead he just slowly walked forward. "Igneous what are your orders," Dettetcheny asked but he received no respawns. "Igneous?" He asked with the same result.

Just when he had covered about a fourth of the distance from the door to Hilliph he finally said, "Hilliph Verex, I've come to kill you."

"Kill me?" He said. "I thought the mission was to recover this light magic." He levitated the pure white orb out of his bag showing them all that he still had it in his safe keeping.

"This isn't about the mission anymore. Now it's personal."

"I see," he answered. "It seems you do care about your father after all. I could say the same for him, but I would rather not speak for a dead stallion."

"Enough talk. Hilliph Verex I challenge you to a one on one duel."

"Igneous?" Dettetcheny said a little sternly. "You can't do this. You got to use us to your advantage."

"To refuses," he continued without acknowledging Dettetchenys request. "Would bri-"

"Would bring same to me and my name," Hilliph finished for him. "But you see Igneous. I hate to be the Verex after all these years to dirty our name after so many decades of trying to clear it." He looked into the orb. "To some the Verex name will be looked upon as evil, but to the people of istudious they will see me as a hero. I'm sorry Igneous I really am, but I refuse the call to combat."

"You have no honor Hilliph," Said in anger. "You attacked team Vendetta when they trusted you most you attack my team when we trusted you most and you're nothing but a dirty liar!"

He bagged the magic again and said, "Igneous, I cannot guarantee the safety of your team if you follow me past this threshold. I'm giving you one fair warning to turn back now."

"That depends," Igneous said. The others exchanged glances confused that Igneous was actually considering or appearing to consider dropping the mission. "Will letting you obtain what you desire harm anypony or the destruction of my nation?"

"I cannot guarantee that," he answered.

"Then I cannot let allow you to continue."

"Very well," he turned and began to walk towards the doors, and as he got near it the massive structures opened their own and just before he entered he said. "I now invite you into the guardians chamber." Hilliph disappeared beyond the doors just as they shut behind him.

The others waited for Igneouses command if they were to proceed or not. They expected an order of some kind but there was none. Dettetcheny finally asked, "Igneous? What are your orders?"

Finally he said, "Dettetcheny, Floritha, Oxinum and team Vendetta." He lowered his head abit and continued saying, "I've been a terrible leader. I don't deserve you, any of you. Dettetcheny this wasn't your mission and you only came because I asked. This fight isn't for this mission but between me and Hilliph and is for me to brave alone." He turned to face them and said, "I don't want to ask any more of you, but if any of you continue I cannot guarantee your safety or that you will return alive."

Every pony exchanged glances from one another. Most of their faces were one of confusion but then Dettetcheny stepped forward and said, "Why would you expect us to turn back now, especially after so long?" He chuckled a bit, "this has been an adventure Igneous and we will be here with you to the end." Dettetcheny nealed and the rest followed and he said, "Were at your command."

Igneous nodded and said, "Thank you. All of you for staying by me."

Dettetcheny let himself up and said, "But befor you go I will not have you enter without proper protection." He nodded Joel over to him and he ran over carrying the rounded plate ripped from the back of the desert scorpion. Dettetcheny took it in his magicle grip, held it infront of Igneous and said, "Hilliph will have regained his strength and with it the ability to summon a pure black flame. Such a thing degrades metal and whittles it down to nothing." He took out a red stone and said, "but a shield made of living flesh will not be degraded. This plate has yet to be bound and what was meant for me I will give to you."

"Thank you sincerely Dettetcheny." Igneous unsheathed his sword and gave himself a small cut on his hoof. He smeared the red rock with his blood and then healed himself to stop the bleeding. He then took the shield and placed it into a notch that Dettetcheny had already carved and with that the shield had now been bound to him and he could wield it with even greater ease. He gave one last look at every pony and nodded satisfied with their abilities and said, "Let's go." He connected the hilt to his other sword and held the double bladed swords at his side with the shield resting on his back.

Dettetcheny followed with his tower shield ripped from the same scorpion and his weapon he forged, and his team and Igneouses team followed suit ready for anything that lay beyond the door.

One day earlier

"I've returned," Hilliph said as he entered into through the doors. The room he stood in was massive in size and it made the Hexers grand hall looks small in comparison. It had four large pillars run up all the way up into the ceiling and were attached by various rafters. What laid there in tangled was a snake made completely of stone. Its scales took the shape of a rhombus and went across the entire length of the making them look as if they were interconnected and could flow freely around each other.

On the far side of the room was another set of massive double doors and just above that was a balcony and on the balcony there was a throne that held a vicious looking beast unlike any other that was made of rock and was carved in a way that gave it the appearance of wearing armor. To this Hilliph had spoken to and from this it replied with a thunderous voice saying, "so you have, and with you I sense something elts."

"Yes," Hilliph said kneeling to it. "It's the light magic of Aminus but I only brought it for its own safety and refuge from those who seek to use it for evil."

Again he spoke with a thunderous voice but one of wisdom and not anger "Bringing it here near the imprisonment were the very being the magic was liberated from may, not have been the wisest course of action."

"I understand," Hilliph answered.

While it spoke neither its mouth nor bodie moved and he said, "But since it has driven one such as you to such measures then I would not doubt what you say, especially a Verex such as yourself. I've seen a few Verexes in my life but each one had the desire to clean and uphold their name and I can say after so many years the title Verex is a pure one. You are deserving of my trust, but on one condition that you tell your pressures they have one chance to turn around. If they refuse I will not withhold my power to protect you and this magic and destroy them completely."

"I understand," he said. "I will see to it your condition is met." And so he turned and left.

 **T &F**

This is almost done holy crap. I'm going to start posting this to fimfiction because it's actually for bornys and not only that but it is an attempt at something original too something people tend to like. I'm starting on doing corrections and i'm going to merge the chapters in to acts with the first five chapters being act one.

I don't know how long till my next chapter but you can bet your bucket it will be coming out and I will be finishing this.


	6. Chapter 19

Um…

Dark?

 **Chapter 19**

It was still, it was quiet and then the doors of the massive chamber opened up letting two teams of Falconers come charging in expecting a fight. When they stood amidst the room they however briefly stopped marveling at its size and how it dwarfed any great hall they had ever seen. "Whoa, this place is huge," Joel said mouth agape like a few other of his peers. The hall stood on four pillars that reached far into the roof which was held together by rafters. The place itself seemed to be made out of smoothen granite though the material seemed to be of a different caliber.

Igneous was not however and he continued to march forward till he was stopped by a booming voice. "Seek to be murderous, attack my own servants, ignore the warnings of him who gave you one and now for your transgressions the punishment is death." Like the rest Igneous came to a sudden stop in his tracks and as he did he looked upwards to find himself looking into the face of a stone beast that sat atop a throne made also of stone. "My power transcends two worlds. Observe as it will be the last spectacle you witness."

"MAJIN!" He shouted. Igneous immediately unsheathed one swords connecting it to the hilt of his second and pulled it out laying it against the side of his scorpion plated shield and as he did Dettetcheny ran up at his side with his scorpion plated tower shield and two blunted claws ready to fight. With the earth ponies in the back and the Pegasus already having taken fight they were ready.

As it lumbered out of its seat the other ponies thought it was a mythical beast of magic but Joel knew better as when he laid his eyes on it he immediately recognised it as a knight in armor. Resting its hand on the balcony it hurled itself over the railing landing heavily on the floor below causing it to shake with impact.

As it stood up it held its hand out and in it a black sword summoned far bigger than any of Igneouses or Dettetchenys blades as this beasts blade was too scale with its size.

"Uhhhh, yea no." Instantly Joel fired an explosive shot aimed straight at its face and it was true to his intentions as it exploded on impact but when the dust recided he and the other ponies found that just off the stony skin of the beast resinated a black like cloke that appeared on impact.

Music: ( watch?v=V7qjZyqk3HI)

"Dark armor," Igneous said allowed.

With anger the beast leaped out at them with speed that faster than that of his mass should have been allowed. With the best of their abilities both Igneous and Dettetcheny leaped out of the way letting the huge dark sword smash down between them and as Igneous gain some distance he shouted, "Fire everything."

Dettetcheny found himself at its ankles and he delivered to fast swipes with crushing accuracy only to be deflected by the same dark mist harder than the rock this beast was made out of.

The beast spun around throwing a disengaging swipe at him as he lept away knocking the shield he held out of his magical grip sending it flying across the massive hall. The beast then spun around swiping across the floor after being hit twice by explosive arrows only to find his face being clawed on by a pegasus.

Dettecheny delivered a hard blow to the back of its legs causing it to collapse even as the dark armor protected him, and as he did both Joel and Oxinum fired multiple explosive rounds each finding his target. With a roar the beast raised its hand flipping itself back onto its feet throwing the blade at Joel who took cover behind the pillar, but even as he did it still pierced the stone monolith coming inches away from cutting him in half before becoming stuck in the structure.

"I will crush you all," it shouted. He raised his hand and from it a torrent of fire exploded from its fingertips aimed directly at Igneous who blocked it with his shield letting the flames kick over his head as he felt the heat and intensity of its very essence.

"Igneous," Kara shouted but when he looked up from his shield he found he had been kicked by the very monster sending him flying across the great hall.

It then summoned a whip and it turn swinging it upwards at Floritha and shot a concussive blow straight into the air not hitting her with the fletching but stunning her with the shockwave.

"Now," Dettetcheny shouted and the as the beast turned to look he found the back of his head being rammed by a Floritha causing him to fall to his knees and as he did Dettetcheny caught him with the end of his great sword stabbing upwards. It grinded against the dark armor that resonated but didn't pearce the stone hide of the beast. "His dark armor is too strong," he shouted as he lept backwards repeatedly before it was to late for such an opportunity.

"It will break with persistence!" Kara yelled as she flew away. "Keep hitting it!"

Floritha who had fallen from being stund was saved by Mace who caught her in the fall. "I-I can't move."

"Shh, It's ok i'm right here." Oxinum said as he rested her against the corner in the far side of the room.

"Your fools, all of you," The beast said as he climbed to his feet. "You seek the light magic of Aminus." He bounded into the air falling on Dettetcheny with an elbow aimed for the unicorn. Luckily he dodged out of the crushing blow which sent stone flying everywhere. Joel fired off his last few explosive rounds degrading the armor but never breaking it.

Igneous then lept onto its back and swiped at its neck with no obvious damage done. It whipped its elbow back flinging Igneous off as he rolled over he let loose with a kicked aimed at the still airborne unicorn hitting him in the center of his chest, flying into a wall and falling to the floor, still. "The power of Aminus is more than you can fathom."

He then summoned a new dark weapon. A war hammer and as he held it in both hands he marched along towards the unconscious Igneous. "I'm out," Joel yelled as he a standered wooden bolt. Oxinum found himself with the same statues and as Dettetcheny tried to destract him with a few attacks the beast simply kicked him off not dealing the same damage as that of Igneous.

As he raised his dark hammer aimed to kill him he found his very hands being hit by an explosive arrow knocking the hammer from his grip and he look and saw a new earth pony had entered. "Save him," Mace yelled as he fired two more shots at his face and with those final shots a dark mist shot out from the beast and it fell to his knees.

It cried out, "My, armor."

"Mace," Floritha cried out in sudden relief.

As he ran an invisible perimeter around the beast he said, "I never break my promises Kara."

It then raised its hands once more. "I will not be defeated so easily. Suddenly his right arm exploded as a black summon snake brst from within it wrapping itself around the body of the beast and appearing to be alive though it was manipulated by the knight itself. "Feast Mignaris, for this is our final fight."

He swung his body and the snake around aimed right at Mace. With its mouth agaped it swiped for the earth pony with intentions to consume, however Mace was far too swift as he slid just underneath its reach and fired two explosive shots at the bodie of the beast as he ran under the legs of it too. It took no damage as its body was protected by the dark coils of the snake's body.

He ran for the pillar and as he did the snake buried its fangs into the ground vaulting the knight forward at Mace who dove behind the pillar only to see completely destroyed by the snake who rammed its head straight through.

Quickly he jumped backwards letting the snake's head smash into the floor. Taking the opportunity he jumped on its head and as a result got flung into the air. Flailing about he quickly switched his left crossbow to string shot pushed down on the lever loading the flight groove and fired upwards as a result of not taking the time to aim properly.

The arrow bounced off the stone wall and miraculously wrapped the wire around one of the rafters high above leaving him dangling at the end of a string. The knight charged the vulnerable Mace with the snake ready to mercilessly bite down when Dettetcheny ran full force swinging his greatsword with his with his mouth right into the exposed stone legs of the beast causing him to fall with cracked, not broken, legs.

"Your like little pest needing to be exterminated." It said as it rushed the unicorn.

Mace struggled to free himself but if he let himself fall he would surely be injured. As he tugged at the wire, he looked up to see a very familiar snake giving off a slight luminescent glow and he realized that thing was his weapon. Quickly he loaded his right sided crossbow even as they fought below, but his aim would be off as he was hanging the wrong way.

"Taff," he grunted as he came to his conclusion. "Curse me dammit." He disconnected the wire and as he fell he aimed his newly loaded lift shot upwards and fired one explosive round right at the head of the snake statue.

He heard the explosion even as he smashed into the ground breaking the right sided crossbow in the collision with his bodie, and as he dazily looked up the statue immediately shattered faster than you would have thought possible.

As a result the knights snake immediately shattered into dark little specs and vanished and he fell to his knees picking up the pieces of dark ash saying its name allowed as mourned over the remnants of his weapon.

Forgetting the Unicorn and pegasus he looked to Mace who was unable to move. Picking himself up he rushed for him and Dettetcheny helplessly ran for him even though he was far behind.

The monster raised its fist just ready to crush Mace with his raw strength and aggression but suddenly, Igneous, unarmed and without a shield, covered Mace standing in front of him and the stone beast brought its fist down with a crushing blow.

"No," Mace cried out. But as the dust settled he found Igneous had not been crushed. There he stood with a dark mist surrounding him that quickly dissipated. "What?"

Igneous looking surprised said, "Gift of dark armor?"

"Haha," Joel laughed out as the beast was distracted. Summoning his stolen dark magic he took it in his grip, commanding it to protrude four saw like blades and threw it like a frisby aim for the back of the stone knight.

It pierced and with a monstrous cry the stone monster crumbled as the dark magic sailed straight through its hide and boomeranged back to Joel, smug and all.

Its body cut in half and crumbled to the floor and even as it did the stone of the beast turned to lava and with the last of its life he said, "My magic. Will die with me."

"Magic?" Kara said remembering the nature of this creature. "Magic of course it's a Majin," she said excitedly forgetting everything that had just happened prior to this announcement. The lava was so hot Igneous had to drag Mace away from where he stood just to avoid getting seriously burned. When Igneous looked he saw a haze of three different collars begin to take shape into three small balls within the lava itself. Kara taking flight to get a better view began to inch closer. "It's magic it really is a majins magic."  
"Kara don't," Igneous yelled. "The lavas too hot, you'll burn."

"No I can do it," she said to herself as she slowly began to lower herself through the air even as the heat intensified."

Igneous seeing her blindness ran forward pulling out his ember stone, "Kara please!"

"Egh," she said wincing at the burning pain. "I-I can, ah, ouch." Her feathers began to burn and she began to lose control over her flight.

"No!" he yelled as he began to suck the heat from the lava with the power of the ember stone, but it was too late as she fell into the still cooling lava pool burning her very skin and feathers of her wings. Igneous didn't stop as he continued to absorb the lavas energy until it was cooled to solid rock with an severly injured pegasus laying on top.

The magic had become entrapped in the stone lava and her efforts appeared fruitless.

"Kara?" Igneous called out as he ran up to her. "Kara please are you alright." Slowly turning her over he found that the fur of her coat had been completely burnt off where she had have the most contact with the intense heat. Her left wing was eaten away by the lava leaving only a stump and her right wing had no feathers to speak of.

Her face and body were scared and she was injured and, now, forever flightless. Dettetcheny appeared scared by what he had witnessed and the same could be said for Joel who disappeared around a corner to relive his stomach of, 'stress.'

"Help me Dettecheny," Igneous said as he did his best to practice his light magic healing.

Nervously he began doing the same although his was much better however he knew that no amount of healing could bring her back from such a state.

The great hall was in ruins as stone and uplifted floor littered the entirety of the place. Floritha recovered from her the stunning blow she had received and when she rounded the pillar with Oxinum who had been watching from afar she saw the last sight of Dettetcheny on his hooves before he fell to the ground unable to move and in great pain. "Dettetcheny," she cried, and both her and Oxinum rushed to help their friend they knew was out of remedy.


	7. Chapter 20 Ashes

As Floritha did her best to aid her fallen friend she fell to the floor stiff as her paralysis hadn't completely worn off causing Oxinum to come to a halt sure weather to help the modestly healthy Floritha or the detierating Dettetcheny.

"G-go. Please," she grunted as she struggled to come to grips with her ability to move.

Without word Oxinum ran as fast as he could to Dettetcheny who was beginning to consciously writhe in agony and when he came to his side he could tell Dettetcheny was more frustrated with himself than he had ever seen befor. "Oxi- ah, ouch. Oxinum, Ah!" Furious at the pain he ripped the scorpion helmet off with his hoofs resulting in Dettetcheny stiffening as he silently cried, opened mouth, in pain from the sudden agony he self inflicted.

"Dettetcheny stop," he commanded.

He raised a hoof even while he suffered and through gasps he said, "help her."

Oxinum looked to the white mound of coolen ash to see Igneous over an unmoving charged figure. Against Mace who laid amongst a small pile of shattered wood heavily breathing from probably breaking a few ribs and Jeol too stunned to move left only Kara.

Igneous didn't want to move the horribly burned pegasus even as she was passed out from intense heat and quite possibly pain. Even still he carefully took Kara by her chest plate lifting it and her along with. He had to turn away as he couldn't stand the sight of a flaccid corpse like figure of a friend just hangs there even as he tried to help.

Gradually taking care not to slip or cause her any more harm he lowered her off the mound and without thought, layed her directly across from Dettetcheny.

As Mace laid there helpless he looked to Joel who appeared lost in thought and with a burning question he asked, "How did you do that Joel?"

Snapping back into reality he caught himself from falling sideways and looked to Mace. With what he just asked syncing in he said, "I don't know." When really he did know but was just too unnerved to bother saying how he remembered getting slashed by a black protruding blade and at that moment when the Majin was occupied imagined not one but four identical blades protruding outwards at once and throwing it in a sawlike motion cutting the beast with unimaginable efficiency. Nothing even there hycrome tipped blades could do when his dark armor was down. When he looked back to Mace who was trying to stand himself up he saw a small pool of blood right where he was lying and caught the slightest glimpse a shard of wood sticking through his side. Quickly he jumped up stopping, "don't, your impaled."

"Spare me," he spat as he got to his hooves regardless of his injury. Just as he could imagine his left crossbow had been smashed upon impact with untipped, wooden bolt shafts strewn all over where he fell and some falling from the clip that covered his back that would have held thirty total. Joel could imagine that beneath the thin layer of collared fur there was an enormous bruise that roughly outlined the impact made by the crossbow that must've been adding to the painful sensation.

Keeping in mind of his injuries he walked with great care he came around the corner to see two struggling bodies; Floritha and Dettetcheny. And one standing over another with his head lowered. "She still breathing," Igneous said worriedly as he franticly readjusted himself around her.

When Mace laid eyes on her he saw that every inch of skin had its collared fur burned off leaving nothing but burnt skin to protect her from the elements. The sight was horrific and worse than any other he had witnessed and as he fell to his knees he muttered beneath his breath, "Kara, I came back for you… for the promise we made just days ago."

Igneous sat above her with his horn glowing as he did his best to heal her with his light magic though he knew he wouldn't reverse the severe burns he still tried regardless of the obvious outcome of his limited ability.

There was a few moments that seemed to drag on forever as no other pony but Igneous could perform the healing over Kara but the outcome would be all too predictable. She would wake up in a painful state, more so than she could ever imagine. She would have no hope of returning home while suffering in her state and because of this… Igneous did want to think about it, Mace knew all too well about it also along with every Falconer present especially Dettetcheny as he now was faced with the same fate, but he knew that it wasn't definite. Only, because of this, then neither was Karas.

Dettetcheny painfuly spoke, "Igneous."

"No!" he shouted, "I can save her."

"Igneous, you can't. Listen."

"Quiet," he angrily commanded. "I can!"

"Look at me!" he yelled.

With sadness, frustration and hatred he suddenly stood up wiping out his left blade but his mood was diminished when he saw that in Dettetchenys magical grip sparkled a bright white sprite. With confusion written all over his face Dettetcheny took a breath then said, "I, always thought th-that I would consume my own white magic one day." He took a moment to fight off the pain and continued. "Many days of study so that one day I could… relieve myself of this pain, but now I see that this life is a cycle. Bound by relief I sought a solution only now I know that again I must throw myself at the fire to save another life." He held the sprite higher for Igneous to take hold of. "Administer this with care along the back of her spine for it is all of my light magic manifested right here. This will forever expel her from pain and feeling, but not emotion. Not emotion." For a moment Igneous stood there stunned finding himself in much the same traumatic situation as befor, but Dettetcheny wasnt going to waist time. "Take it!"

Igneous did as commanded and scoring a look of confidence he said, "I won't make the same mistake. I'm well practiced, I'm well practiced," he said to himself. He stretched the light magic out into a beam about as long as Kara's spine and making sure not to let the magic slip and fail, he carefully lined it up. He then lowered it down past the skin and bound the magic to her spine just as ordered by Dettetcheny making it a success.

For Igneous it felt intense as if this could mean the outcome of the world and although it didn't what may have possibly did still loomed on one door away. It was decided that only Mace, Joel and Igneous could go as the rest were seemed half way dead save it for Oxinum who was the most healthy of them all. Dettetcheny though had asked he stay. Mace and Joel traded suits seeing Joel had useful stolen dark magic and could manage without and the three of them left leaving Mace, Floritha who still had trouble moving, Dettetcheny suffering from some pain only his team knew and Kara whose burnt body still rested, still able to breathing but unable to feel.

As they disappeared around the opening the massive doors suddenly shut insuring that no more may enter locking the four of them out. Floritha still laid there solem and Oxinum looked even worse as he stared at the ground awaiting for the inevitable that was to come from Dettetcheny.

His fears were recognised as Dettetcheny asked just what Oxinum said he would never do again. "Oxinum," he winced. "I need you, too…"

"I can't," said abruptly. "I know what you're going to ask, but, I swore I would never again."

"What is holding you back?" he said in pain. "This is an act of m-mercy, just as mine was with Kara I ask the same from you, my friend."

"No, wait p-perhaps theirs…" He did his best to come up with an alternative solution but there was none. They were weeks away from home, many many miles from help and his friend here in an uncharted scarce land was suffering the likes of which Oxinum knew not. He cursed himself for being bound to this situation, for having to turn towards the only solution he swore long long ago he would never again do. Only now he needed it.

Silently Dettetcheny reached out his hoof pressing Oxinum's chest plate causing both crossbows to spring up, neither of which were or ever befor aimed at Dettetcheny. "Look at me."

"Oxinum," Floritha gasped raising both hooves up to her mouth as she witnessed this Falconer, a symbol of hope a close friend who many times fought alongside who never once flinched in the sight of danger or retreated needlessly. Always came to the aid of the needy and became an icon for little ones. Everything embodied in this simple earth pony diminished throwing out courage, strength and boldness as Floritha witnessed him begin to cry.

Even as he sobbed he knew. He just knew. "When I do," he weakly said. "Please, spare me your glance. Look away as I do this for you."

Dettetcheny nodded and, "Please, befor I leave… Let me give this to Kara." He unfastened his ties to his full bodied garb and removed it to reveal that just like Kara he too was severely burned and completely scared by the flame leaving nothing but blackened burnt skin bearing no coat of hair. As he laid next to Kara he began to cloth her slipping the fabric under her body and wrapping her in the cloth hiding the scars and burns revealing nothing but her eyes. He fastened it tight and giving one last painful huff he nodded to Oxinum and closed his eyes breathing heavily.

Slowly Oxinum swiveled his head aiming the crossbows directly at his fellow Falconer and friend. "A word?" was all he could manage to ask as he pulled down on the lever fixing the wooden shaft to the hard tipped arrow.

Dettetcheny rested his head on the ground as Oxinum carefully put a hoof down to steady him trying in vain not to inflict any more pain. "Remember the garden?"

And Oxinum fired.

In an instant the deafening silence took hold of the great hall. Every crack every falling pebble from the collateral damage of the aforementioned fight, the winds from outside which bled inwards. The breath of the almost deceased and the heavy heartbeat of the merciful became amplified and for a long time their was nothing but silence as no pony consciously dared disturb this moment.

But only a mumble, sounding like a shout, but barely a mumble Oxinum uttered, "De-Dettetcheny?"

The world rumbled around his senses had been lost as he dangled over the edge. He felt at bliss for a brief very brief moment before he started to hear a distant murmur that soon grew louder and louder and not long after he realized the sound and recognised the voice. It was Joel. "Mace! Holly shit Mace! Shit, shit, shit."

And with the sense of hearing came the sense of vision and he found himself being suspended in midair above a dark foreboding pit surrounded by the natural stone of a cave far bigger than any structure he had seen before and one that had once held the fortress of a prisoner. That prisoner being Aminus the now appropriately named, colossal black dragon before he and the fortress collapsed into a void of white but as to where it went neither of the two present knew but one, only one did. Our third party member Mace.

Joel continued his frantic shouting and as he begun calling for Igneous he fully snapped back into reality realizing the state, once again, he was in. A wooden bolt was lodged right were his neck met his left shoulder. He could feel the barbed tip pull at his flesh and it caused him agony as he wailed in pain.

"Igneous," Joel cried hearing his screams of pain relieving him of thoughts that he may have died. "Oh shit Igneous are you ok."

'To let the pain pass for it is only apart of mortality. Long as it's not fatal there is no reason to flinch nor bask in the sensation of pure agony.' It's what he told himself sometimes and it worked so far and is also how he managed to reply with a series of incoherent, indecipherable mess of commandes.

"I'll take that as a yes." Joel was standing atop of a half destroyed stone bridge with one string shot, 'attached,' to Igneous by a skillful shot he managed to pull off during the collapse of the bridge and the fortress all together. Joel knew that Igneous already in pain not only because he was screaming and convulsing down below but also because… because... Yea pretty much because he was screaming and convulsing, _but he couldn't just leave him there noooo_. Other wise he would just bleed out so Joel shouted, "I'm going to hoist you up Igneous, just, just hang on for a minute."

"TAFF ELTS AM I GOING TO DO!" He managed to shout.

"Kay," he muttered and setting himself and taking a second to set he started to walk backwards without jolting but keeping in steady pace as to not cause more harm to Igneous in his already critically vulnerable state. But if Joel knew anything about repelling is that the edge of the cliff is always the most difficult part and as Igneous began reaching the underbelly of the bridge he had to stick a hoof out as to not rub up against the stone work which proved unfruitful and his cries of pain attested to it.

Still Joel knew that it's best to pull a bandaid off faster hence why he didn't let up in doing what was good for Igneous if in short term objected otherwise. Igneous did however managed to balance himself on the uneven stone work pressing his three hooves against the wall leaving the fourth one curled up at his side as the bolt tugged on it ever more.

The worst part was indeed the ledge but Igneous held in mind that the sooner it was over the better and with one bound he hooked his forehooves over the edge and with adrenaline coursing through his veins was able to hoist himself up on the the bridge. Heaving with expended effort and rigorous relief from the scale of pain going down from hellish to smoldering embers and mabie next, salted wounds.

"Igneous," Joel said with relief as he ran up to the unicorn letting the wire slacken.

Igneous did a triple take of himself and finally being able to grasp his mind he fully returned to sanity and assessed his situation... Properly. For starters that wooden bolt probably wasn't supposed to be their rubbing up against his scapula. Reaching up to Joel with a hoof he wrapped it around his neck and said with a weary voice, "Joel."

"Yes Igneous what is it? Please tell me."

"I need you…"

"To?" but he already knew where he was going and didn't like the thought of it.

"Take-" he didn't even bother and instead only nodded to it with his head. "Just do it."

'Shit,' he thought. This was going to be visceral and definitely wasn't going to be pleasant. "Right," he said steadying himself getting a hold of his senses. If he remembered properly from the school yard it was that if an arrow was lodged in your shoulder, kinda like here, then you had to, one: Push snap the fletching end off at the skin. Two: Pull the rest of the arrow through but only if the tip had completely pierced through the body, and if not then skip to two then revert to one then back to two and bam your done.

Only problem here was that this was a bolt, shorter pritty much. Second was that the arrow although lodged in his pony shoulder it pointed down his body so unless he wanted to turn him into a single ingredient kabob then performing act two would probably not be the best idea. His best solution was to simply perform act one and only one and seek medical attention… trillions of miles away it seemed, 'were out in the middle of fucking no-were-land how the hell... Ugh.' he didn't want to think about it but action had to come first before thought. That's how all good ideas are made. Taking a deep breath he said, "I'm going to count to five." He wrapped his left hoof around the fletching of the arrow. Nearly half of it was buried within his bodie.

"Justdoitjustdoitjustdoit…"

"Okay okay. Wait," he said as he switched his crossbow to a normal shot and released an arrow letting it fall to the floor. Putting it in Igneouses mouth he said, "Okay okay. Five…"

Igneous took a few deep breaths preparing for the inevitable.

"Four."

It was inevitable it had to happen it was going to be painful it was…

"ONE!"

Suddenly Joel yanked on the bolt with his pony hooves lurching Igneous'es entire body forward as he violently ripped the arrow, tip and all, straight out from where it came.

As Igneous gasped kicking and breathlessly screaming in pain he shattered the shaft of the wooden bolt within his mouth turning the wood to sawdust.

Step zero: Just pull that lil' bitch out. 'Patented.' Holding the bolt bloodied bolt up to his face it revealed some clear signs of blood and flesh and in disgust he threw it into the dark pit below detaching the wire and its real letting it all fall to the endless abyss but apparently not really as he heard the collision it made with the ground far, far, Faaaar below which kinda disappointed him. In tiredness of the hectic evening he fell against the stone railing of the bridge for a well deserved breather. When Igneous episode of agony settled leaving him steadily breathing Joel meagerly called his name saying, "Igneous?"

"Yes Joel," he tiredly answered.

A let a moment of silence fall between them as his mind bolted through the events of the past three days. "I don't think I wanna be a falconer anymore." He said it, he finally said it. "Like FUCK dude. This is some mutha fuckin crazy shit man I just saw a fuckin DRAGON, FUCK!" Another moment of realisation. "I almost fuckin died. SHEEEeeeiiitt man I almost just got fuckin merked." And again. "What the hell he was all like, 'Mrua i'm a big dragon bitch,'" he said doing his best to imitate the dragon's deep voice. "And then there was like chains-n-shit and I was all like, 'fuck you bitch,' and I like his alchemy got fucked up by my dark magic thing then he was all like, 'BRUuu.' Then like the castle started collapsing-n-like he opened a portal thingy and fucking we were running like hell ya know, and then the bridge started to fall and you started to fall and I was like, 'Igneous aw fuck no,' and then I was all like FLING! ...flipping my little wrist thingy and shot you saving your goddamn life and then there was like a chain thing and it shot up and at me but Mace, aw Mace. He saved my ass but now he's Ded..."

Igneous still resting having heard everything listening to his rant simply said, "Falconering isn't for everypony. It's was one of the first things I said when I met you Joel."

"Are we going to mourn over Mace?"

"In time."

"The adrenalin hasn't quite run its course yet I guess."

Looking over the edge into the black abyss below he then pushed himself away standing up on three hooves keeping his more injured one levitated in air. Looking to Joel he nodded and said, "Let's go. Were done here."

He shook his head saying, "I don't think we won the day. If he was defeated it certainly doesn't feel like a victory. It's more like a… a stalemate."

"This isn't a story Joel," he said sternly. "This is how it is. Now let's go," he began walking towards the great double doors.

Joel pushed himself up and said, "*tisk* Igneous you need to stop getting up after every mortal wound. This isn't MKX you know. You can't just rupture every lung, organ, bone, eye, throat neck and tooth and just expect to get up again."

"I'm fine," said he as he took massive limps as he strode towards the exit.

"You're fucking insane."

When they budged the door open allowing them to slip through they walked the long connecting hall the only served to make the floor plan of the place look good on paper and was in no way efficient. Reaching the end they opened the final large gate and as Igneous slipped through the opening he saw that the place was still in ruins and was left almost exactly how they had left it.

He saw Oxinum hunched over Dettetcheny shuddering while Floritha respectfully stood by for comfort but she too was mourning. Were Kara had previously lain she was no longer there and he rushed as injured as he was over to the spot where she last was, confused and scared as to what might have happened while he was gone. "Where is she," he asked. "Were?" he said again to the couple. He saw Dettetcheny, his prevoulsly unseen crimson, scared body with a wooden bolt that piercing his skull and realized what Oxinum had done. He felt terrible for the earth pony but he still knew not about Kara. "Where?" he said louder.

Oxinum didn't awnser but Floritha did and shaking her head she said, "She… ran away."

"What?" he said confused. How could she in her state even begin to walk to trod or even run. It was impossible just impossible to say the least. "How?"

"Dettetcheny relieved Kara of her senses." Looking up to him Floritha said, "She feels nothing now Igneous. And so she ran away."

Igneous had to accept it, he had to. There was no other way because amidst the things he saw today the things he did it no longer seemed far fetched. He would take it as fact, as a hard loss. He would mourn throughout the days to come but one thing still remained. All this was meaningless unless they survive and they had many, many miles to travel in a land full of monsters and with Igneous injured half the party emotionally corrupted and Joel, they were going to have to pull through all together as one.

"Your embers have dimmed," he said speaking to the two of them in a low hushed voice. "You threaten to devolve into colden ash never to be rekindled. Let us mourn over the dead but not without first forth putting the living. We will mourn together, cry together but if by the embers within me we will not die together. Let us remember him and let us not forget you are in need of a leader. Follow me, reignite the flame within you and I promise we will make it home as one… or I dare not call myself a Sirvidian. By my word and by my embers we will make it home. Now stand."

As expected they did not for a time move but with patents they did as asked standing and raising their heads high to Igneous, their new leader. "I will follow you just as Dettetcheny," Oxinum said still with sadness in his voice.

Slowly Igneous limped by giving Oxinum and Floritha his nod of approval and when they ascended the stairs leading to the outside world they found the skies were black with falling ash. The forest to the east was burning.

The collateral of a fight between two kings. How easily it could have been taken as an omen. Ashes.

 **T &F**

Wow... wow... wow... I'm done... Wow.

Reader: But what about that dragon fight you mother fucking trolling ass bitch the fuck you stupid twisted...

Me: Yup :3 Thats in the Hexer sequil... See you till then. *Awkwardly leaves the stage*


	8. History of Carridian

Carridians History

Notice

This goes through the three great historical events in detail so you know everything that happens in the world of Carridian. It explains the naming of Corridian, when the first Pegasus and Unicorns come from, and tell what happened up until Joel arrives. Certain history events will affect the adventure of Joel and the other Falconers so this isn't fluff. This does have an impact on the story i'm writing. These event will be mentioned in the book albeit in pieces and a lot less detailed. Read if you want.

Intro

The history of Carridian has three major events that happened in its history. The First war, the Great rising, and the the Magic era. Written and recorded history for the ponies didn't start till after the first war but was back tracked back soon after. As far back as history goes is only a few years before the First war begins.

So far they have only recorded five hundred and fifty years of history and no pony knows where they originated or came from. Not until the Great Rising would we start to see Pegasus and Unicorns.

They occupy a huge stretch of land that is surrounded by mountains so tall they have not been passed, and if they did manage to they never came back. Even Pegasus can't make the Journey.

First war

Before the first war ponies had little villages with simple houses made out of wood and sticks. They used simple tools made out of copper to do various things. as more and more villages popped up the ponies began to trade more more with each other. Soon over a period of time each village became dependent on the other because they would only do one of three things. They either mined for metals, cut wood, or farmed.

Because of this they had a strong connection because without one all three would soon die off. Without metal they can't make tools. Without wood they can't make houses or tools. Without food they would starve.

There was two villages that lived close together and were about a few miles apart. They both were mining villages and the village leaders began to hate one another due to compitition. They would have to compete just to feed themselves as nearby villages didn't really need the both of them to sustain themselves.

Now the village leader Kordan Verex decided to take over that village and have it under his control so his village did not starve. They built some of the first wepons, them being a simple sword and spear. However since they didn't have hands they would tie them to their backs and attack that way. It wasn't the most effective thing but it was a massive advantage over the other.

Kordan took over the other mining village and killed their leader. Craving the victory and bloodshed as no pony ever did before he took over the two nearest farming and timber villages and made himself completely self sustaining.

Kordan Verex was the first to have conquered land from other ponies and named the bit of land he now controlled after himself. Since he was self sustaining he didn't need any other villages but they would need him for his unique situation.

Kordan began undercutting nearby mining villages by reducing the prices of the copper and when they needed money the most he would then have them agree to join his small nation he was beginning to build. After he controlled the nearby mining villages he then attacked the farming villages in the same way by using the same undercutting prices strategy and then he would move to the timber villages and do the same thing.

As his power grew other villages started to form triple alliances with each other to make themselves self sustaining as to not fall to the power and control of Kordan Verex. After he found out about all these triple alliances he found he couldn't expand any further without war. Being the greedy ruler he was he declared war on all triple alliances and so begun the first war.

Since Kordan had so many villages under his control innovation happened much faster as a result. They discovered how to make bronze, and soon discovered iron. Kordan's nation was the most technologically advanced nation in the whole valley.

As the first triple alliances fell to Kordan's army, all other triple alliances formed one great alliance. Soon all the rest of the villages that were not under Kordan's control rose up against him. As great a fight they put up they couldn't fight back against their superior technology. Kordan had invented armor with fixed swords attached and crossbows using all the resources he had. These crossbows were also fixed and in order to hit a target they would have to point their entire body just to hit it.

Kordan eventually had control over all of Corridian and then years later died and old stalyon. His son who his father had sent to prolong his work refused to and divided up Kordan's nation into three great nations. After this great act they named the huge valley in which they lived after Kordan's son, Corridian Verex.

Now by this time the war had taken sixty years if you count the years from the first attack that happened in the mining village. When war was declared it lasted ten years. By this time the technological achievements were the discovery of bronze, iron and gold. They houses had evolved into more complex with stone being used as foundation. They invented armor and fixed weapons they would mount on there back. Stick walls were used during the First war although they were weak and not completely reliable.

The Great Rising

The Great Rising didn't happen until forty years after the First war. The Great Rising was a problem for all the nations. Monsters began to appear out of nowhere attacking lone villages when they least expect it. During this time the weapons were mostly ineffective as they would need to get really close to the monsters to even hit them. They tried showering arrows down on them, and as effective as it was it didn't hold them off for long.

During this disastrous time period Pegasus and Unicorns started to be born. As the Unicorns grew up they were found to be levitating objects and could do more complex task using this ability. They advance technology by inventing gear systems and more complex weapons.

With the gear systems they invented the Free Moving Crossbow that could aim where you were looking by using springs and wires that attached to there heads. This made earth ponies the more effective against monsters.

Pegasus also became useful as they could scout the skies for any incoming attacks. Pegasus invented bladed feathers and metal claws making it so they could sneak attack monsters and hit them in their weak points from above.

The unicorn became the most effective at dealing damage to monsters by using their natural ability to levitate objects to control swords to deadly effect. They were equipped with heavy armor as well as a tower shield.

Using the abilities of all three types of ponys, they made groups of three, and sometimes four, and called these groups Falconers. They were effective at killing and hunting monsters by using tactics and teamwork to take them down.

This part of Coridian history took place over one hundred and fifty years with the first monster sightings starting at year one of the Great Rising up untill monster attacks and the rise of Falconers. By this time they had made stone structures and invented the most effective weapons by far. These weapons would be used throughout the magic era by all the Falconers with slight variations and modifications.

Magic Era

The Magic Era actually began ten years before what was considered to be the end of the Great rising. Technically The Great Rising is not over because monsters attacks still happen albeit they happen a few months apart. During this time Unicorns started to conjure up spells. Some of the first were the discovery of the ability to alter and control the basic four elements of fire, air, water and earth. They would also discover useful spells that could help with specific things, like healing, and summoning phantoms. (Mostly phantom weapons and not spirits.)

They divided all these spells into three main categories. Alchemy spells that used the four main elements, dark magic that could be used for war, defence and protection, and light magic which affected the physical nature of the caster or receiver, but could still be weaponized through creative use.

The Magic Era although was the time to discover magic wasn't just about that. Instead it was the monsters that used Magic. They were more intelligent. Some even said that they talked and could understand the ponies language. They were more decisive and hard to kill. Often times entire nations of Falconers would disappear after looking for one.

This is when the Hexers arrived. No pony ever knew where the Hexers came from, they just appeared out of nowhere. Some say they came from the Mountains and others say that they were also monsters. The weapons they wielded were not the basic sword crossbow and razor wings. They were intricate and more complex and much more efficient at killing. Some used scythes and others used chained weapons. Only Hexers could use these weapons for they were the only ones who understood how to use them.

Hexers were said to be Magic using Falconers. Not just Unicorns but pegasus and earth ponies used magic as well. They were defined by seals they were said to appear on their bodies by absorbing the Magic of a monster. These could appear anywhere on there bodie. Most often times than not they would appear on their faces forming intricate patterns that glowed just before using their magic.

This magic they had was very powerful. Some said even the most powerful could control time itself making them gods. Although there were powerful Hexers out there they never used Alchemy, light or dark magic to harm anypony.

One monster rose out of nowhere like most did. Except this one was the most powerful Magic using Monster there was. Its name was Aminus. This monster was a Black dragon. He could use all three types of magic and wielded them with great effect.

No Hexer could possibly destroy Aminus. Corridian was on the brink of destruction as Aminus loomed over the last great nation. Then Noriphmy appeared. He was all of the three ponies in one. Earth, Pegasus and Unicorn. He was a god that wielded the greatest of Alchemy, Light and Dark magic. He used all of his power to fight Aminus.

After two long days he finally did destroyed Aminus by dragging him down to the nether forever a prisoner of the underworld. No one knows where Noriphmy came from or where he went to after the battle with Aminus. Some say he was a Magic god that came down to rescue them, and others speculate he was just another monster that appeared as a pony. Magic wielding monsters have never been seen ever again, and peace has been throughout the final nation named after their savior. Noriphmy.

The Magic Era began with the discovery of the three different magics and ended with Aminus'es defeat. The Magic Era lasted two hundred years and beyond that there had been fifty years of peace aside from falconers still being needed to hunt monsters. Hexers went back into hiding and were never seen again although reported sightings have been made, but there was never any real proof. This is where Joel starts his journey after fifty long years of peace.


End file.
